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Manchester United legend Paul Scholes had announced his retirement at the end of the 2010-11 season having won the Premier League title and played in the final of the Champions League where United were defeated by a Lionel Messi powered FC Barcelona.
Six months later, with United in crisis in central midfield, Scholes came out of retirement, famously turning up at the Carrington, having purchased his boots from a local sports shop. He played for another season and a half for the club and retired at the very top at the close of the 2012-13 season with another Premier League medal strapped around his neck.
However, not all great midfielders were able to wind their careers down at the pinnacle of the beautiful game. Let’s take a look at a few top midfielders who switched to the lesser leagues during the twilight of their careers:
Note: This list excludes players who moved to China or the Middle East during their peak years on a lucrative contract.
#6 Steven Gerrard (LA Galaxy)
In January 2015, Major League Soccer club Los Angeles Galaxy announced the signing of Liverpool FC icon Steven Gerrard on an 18 month ‘Designated Player’ contract reportedly worth $9 million.
He made his MLS debut in July 2015 and was named in the MLS All-Star roster following his stellar performances, scoring one and setting up another for former Liverpool teammate Robbie Keane against the San Jose Earthquakes which resulted in a 5-2 victory for Galaxy.
He scored another goal, the winner against FC Dallas, across 13 appearances in the regular MLS season. However, the Galaxy were eliminated from the MLS Cup by Seattle Sounders.
In the 2016 MLS season, Gerrard made 21 appearances, scoring 3 goals as LA Galaxy crashed out of the MLS Cup playoffs in a penalty shootout loss to the Colorado Rapids in November. A week later, Gerrard announced that he’d be leaving the club when his contract expired. Later that month, Gerrard announced his retirement from the game.
He is presently the manager of the Scottish Premiership Club Rangers.
#5 Frank Lampard (New York City FC)
In January 2015, the same month in which Steven Gerrard signed for LA Galaxy, the Premier League’s best goal-scoring midfielder Frank Lampard joined the Galaxy’s east coast counterparts New York City FC, debuting against Montreal Impact in a 3-2 loss.
He scored his first goal for NYCFC in a 2-0 win against Toronto FC snapping his team’s 3-game losing streak. In October, the Chelsea legend scored the club’s fastest ever goal against DC United. However, the team finished outside the MLS Cup Playoff places.
Lampard missed the start of the 2016 season and made his first appearance in the New York Derby against the New York Red Bulls playing the final 15 minutes. The match ended 7-0 to the Bulls and NYCFC fans subsequently jeered their own team.
He then scored 4 goals in 5 matches and was cheered by the fans. Lampard became the first NYCFC player to score a hattrick when he put 3 past the Colorado Rapids in a 5-1 win. NYCFC qualified for the MLS Playoffs for the first time by clinching the 2nd place in the Eastern Conference. The England-international featured in both legs of the Eastern Conference semi-final against Toronto FC as City were beaten 7-0.
Just like Gerrard, Lampard announced in November 2016 that he’d be leaving the club when his contract expired. In February, Lampard announced his retirement from the game.
Presently he serves Championship side Derby as their manager.
#4 Andrea Pirlo (New York City FC)
Upon leaving Juventus, Andrea Pirlo joined Frank Lampard at NYCFC as a 'Designated Player' on a contract reportedly worth $8 million. He made his MLS debut against Orlando City as a substitute, coming on in the 56th Minute and assisting his teams 3rd and 4th goals in a 5-3 win.
In his next game against DC United, he assisted David Villa’s goal in a 3-1 win. However, the team finished outside the qualification places for the MLS Cup. He assisted 5 goals but didn’t score in the entire season.
Pirlo started the 2016 season strongly, assisting David Villa’s winner in a match against the Vancouver Whitecaps. He scored a free kick against the Philadelphia Union, his first goal in the United States. He finished the season with 1 goal and 11 assists. NYCFC reached the 2016 Eastern Conference semi-finals only to lose 7-0 over the course of the two legs.
Persistent injuries restricted Pirlo to just 2 assists in 15 appearances, the last of which came as a substitute against Columbus Crew in the second leg of 2017 Eastern Conference semi-finals. NYCFC won the match 2-0 but lost the tie 3-4. Pirlo announced his retirement from the game the very next day.
Pirlo was approached by Australian side Avondale FC as a short-term marquee signing. However, Pirlo’s management confirmed that l'architetto (the Architect) won’t be joining the club as he had set his sights on management having completed his coaching badges.
#3 Bastian Schweinsteiger (Chicago Fire)
Bayern Munich and Germany legend Bastian Schweinsteiger ended his Manchester United misadventure when his contract was cancelled by mutual consent on 21st March 2017. He joined MLS club Chicago Fire as their Designated Player on 29th March 2017 following a successful medical.
Schweinsteiger debuted for the Fire on April 1 against Montreal Impact, immediately influencing the proceedings by scoring a goal in the 2-2 draw at home. By mid-season, he had powered the Fire to the top of the MLS standings and into the Play-offs for the first time in 5 years.
‘Schweini’, as a result, was voted into the MLS All-Star Fan XI to face Real Madrid at the 2017 MLS All-Star match in Chicago. The German's contract was subsequently renewed for another season and he has scored a total of three goals this season against Toronto FC, Real Salt Lake and Philadelphia Union, albeit none of the goals has resulted in victories for the Fire.
#2 Andres Iniesta (Vissel Kobe)
On 6th October 2017, Iniesta signed a lifetime contract with FC Barcelona, effectively keeping him at the club for the rest of his career. Barcelona had thus far failed to sign a genuine and able replacement for Iniesta.
However, around this time, Phillipe Coutinho made it clear that he would agitate for and force a move from Liverpool to the Catalan giants. Coutinho signed for the club in January. After insisting for almost six months that the club hadn’t signed Coutinho to replace him, Andres Iniesta confirmed his departure from the club after 22 years at the club including 16 seasons with the first team, securing a league and cup double his final season.
Japanese club Vissel Kobe, who have former Germany, Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Galatasaray star Lukas Podolski on their books as their club captain, announced the signing of Iniesta on 24th May 2018.
Iniesta made his debut in J1 League against Shonan Bellmare coming on a substitute. He scored a stunning long-range effort against Jubilo Iwata after combining well with Podolski to open his account in Japan.
#1 Xavi Hernandez (Al Sadd)
After completing a treble of La Liga, Copa del Rey and the Champions League for the second time in his career, Xavi Hernandez announced his departure from FC Barcelona to join Qatari club Al Saad SC at the end of the 2014-15 season.
His agent claimed that the deal involved Xavi becoming the Brand Ambassador of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which will be held in the country. The move would also facilitate him to begin his coaching badges.
Xavi made his debut for Al Sadd against Mesaimeer which resulted in a 4-0 win. In his next match for the club against Umm Salal, he scored his first goal for the club in a 2-2 draw. In the AFC Champions League, the Qatari were knocked out by Emirati side Al Jazira on penalties, with Xavi amongst those failed to convert their spot kicks.
In his first season with the club, Xavi scored thrice guiding Al Sadd to a third-place finish in the Qatar Stars League and thus the club qualified for the next season’s Champions League.
Xavi won his first trophy with Al-Sadd as the club beat El Jaish 2-0 to win the Qatar Emir Cup in April 2017. The Spaniard also added the Qatar Crown Prince Cup and Sheikh Jassim Cup to his collection in 2017 scoring 10 goals in 32 appearances.
In the 2017-18 season, Xavi made 28 appearances scoring 7 goals. In all, the Barcelona legend has scored 20 goals for Al Saad in 90 games.
