These players gave the fans a lot of unforgettable moments.
Just before the New Year, former CSKA midfielder Miralem Pjanic announced his retirement from his playing career. The Bosnian, who made a significant contribution to the development of one of the main football talents in Russia, is far from the only one who decided to throw his boots away in the closet in the past year. We will remember the most famous of them.
Main clubs in career: “Lyon”, “Roma”, “Juventus”, “Barcelona”
Main achievements: champion of Italy (4), winner of the Italian Cup (2), winner of the Spanish Cup, winner of the Russian Cup
Pjanic’s best years came during the Italian period. He truly shone at Roma and Juventus. After moving to Barcelona, which paid 60 million for the midfielder, a slow decline began. A year later he was loaned to Besiktas, and a season later he went to the UAE for free. The last club of the former Serie A star was the Russian CSKA. The older football player was no longer able to really set the RPL on fire, but his arrival was certainly not in vain. Miralem should be praised for his real contribution to the development of Matvey Kislyak, who has repeatedly confirmed the powerful influence of the Bosnian on his progress. At the end of the season, the army team did not renew the contract with Pjanic, who at the end of the year spoke about leaving football and wanting to devote more time to his family.
Clubs in career: Barcelona, Inter Miami
Main achievements: world champion, European champion, Spanish champion (9), Champions League winner (3), Spanish Cup winner (7)
A legend of the peak Barcelona and the Spanish national team of its best. In a team filled with geniuses, Busquets played an unnoticed but important supporting role. Without his rough work, it would be much more difficult for Messi, Iniesta and Xavi to create on the field. It is significant that the hardworking Spaniard was especially appreciated by Pep Guardiola, who called Busquets the most important element in the invincible Barça system of the late 2000s. Luis Enrique also considered him an exceptional player, under whom the Catalans won their last Champions League. At the end of his career, Busquets, along with other old acquaintances from Barcelona, became the MLS winner with Inter Miami and retired with a sense of accomplishment.
Main clubs in career: Valencia, Barcelona, Inter Miami
Main achievements: European champion, Spanish champion (6), Champions League winner, Spanish Cup winner (5)
Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba / Photo: © Maddie Meyer / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru
Another former Barcelona footballer who decided to retire after his triumph in the American League. How important a partner he was for Messi is revealed by the Argentine’s own heartfelt commentary on Alba’s retirement from football.
– Thank you, Jordi! I will miss you very much. After everything we’ve been through together, it will be strange to see the left flank without you. It’s crazy how many assists you’ve given me over the years. Who will make these passes to me now? – asks Lionel.
Alba’s assist stats are truly outstanding, especially considering his full-back position. Throughout his career, the Spaniard completed 140 assists.
Clubs in career: “Fluminense”, “Real”, “Olympiakos”
Main achievements: Champions League winner (6), Spanish champion (6), Champions League winner, Spanish Cup winner (2)
At the beginning of the year, another legendary full-back announced his retirement. For 15 years, Marcelo rushed like mad along the left flank for Real Madrid. Incredible ball control, unique dribbling and speed allowed him to dominate La Liga for a long time. After leaving the “royal” club, he briefly went to Greece, and ended up where he once started, and even finally managed to win the title with Fluminense.
Clubs in career: Bayern, Borussia D, Roma
Main achievements: world champion, German champion (5), German Cup winner (3)
Mats Hummels / Photo: © Christof Koepsel / Stringer / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru
The Bayern graduate is primarily associated with another German giant. Hummels made a name for himself with Borussia Dortmund, which under him became a top European club. Thanks to his intelligence, leadership qualities and reliability, the German defender was among the best in his role for many years. His last club was Roma, where he spent the 2024/25 season, after which he decided that he had already played enough football.
Clubs in career: “Lyon”, “Barcelona”, “Lecce”, “Lille”
Main achievements: world champion, champion of Spain (2), winner of the Spanish Cup (3)
The decline of the star defender began after the triumphant 2018 World Cup for the French team. At the victorious tournament, Umtiti was an important component of Didier Deschamps’ team and scored the winning goal in the semi-final with Belgium (1:0). In his prime, he was the leader of Barcelona’s defense, but a chronic knee injury did not allow the Frenchman to perform at the same level. Constant pain and frequent visits to doctors drove Umtiti to depression. The defender tried to revive his career at Lille, but in the 2024/25 season he was only registered with the club and did not appear on the field. In the fall, Samuel admitted that his health would still not allow him to return to football.
Clubs in career: Villarreal, Liverpool, Napoli
Main achievements: world champion, European champion (2), German champion, FA Cup winner, Italian Cup winner
A rare example of football longevity. The Spanish goalkeeper was the number one in Liverpool for a long time, and won his main titles in his career as a reserve goalkeeper for the national team. Reina himself admitted that he did not dare to end his career out of fear. He simply couldn’t imagine life without training camps, training sessions and matches. The Spaniard’s last club was Como, where he was not just a mentor, but brought real benefits on the field even at an advanced age by football standards.
Clubs in career: PSV, Napoli, Galatasaray
Main achievements: World Championship bronze medalist, Turkish champion (2), Italian Cup winner (2)
The Belgian could hardly be called a superstar, and he did not play for the top clubs, but he definitely left a noticeable mark in the memory of the fans. The nimble striker, capable of playing in almost any position in attack, has been an idol of Napoli fans for several years. He scored 90 goals for the Neapolitans – the third most in history. Mertens dreamed of winning the Scudetto with the club, but ironically this happened the year after his departure. But he managed to shine in Turkey, managing to become one of the main stars of the championship at a respectable age.
Clubs in career: “Shakhtar”, “Manchester City”, “Atletico Paranaense”
Main achievements: champion of England (5), FA Cup winner, America’s Cup winner, UEFA Cup winner
The famous Brazilian played his last match at the end of 2024, but was in no hurry to announce his retirement. Fernandinho’s best years were in the mid-2000s and throughout the 1900s. While playing for Man City, this defensive midfielder masterfully read the game, stopping the opponent’s attacks in the bud, and immediately starting his team’s attack. He spent the last years of his career in his native Atlético Paranaense, with whom his contract expired a year ago. Until the fall, Fernandinho wondered whether he should still play, but in the end he decided that he had already said everything in football.
Main clubs in career: “Lokomotiv”, “Spartak”
Main achievement: champion of Russia
The list of those who completed their careers would be incomplete without mentioning famous Russian players. In 2025, the former captain of Spartak, who became one of the main designers of the only championship of the red-whites over the past 23 years, left football. Glushakov had every chance to become a legend of Lokomotiv and Spartak, but fans of both teams still had questions about him. In any case, Denis’s career turned out to be bright and eventful. After leaving Spartak, the midfielder managed to play for six clubs, but never truly caught fire anywhere. Last season, I was more likely to be on the roster than to play in Khimki and eventually decided that it was time to quit.
The only club in my career: “Dynamo”
Main achievement: bronze medalist of the Russian Championship (3)
Anton Shunin / Photo: © Dmitry Chelyapin / Match TV
A rare example of devotion to his native club. Shunin spent his entire career with Dynamo, which he did not leave even after relegation to the FNL. In terms of the number of matches played for the “blue and white” (366), he is second only to one player – Alexander Novikov (395), who played in the 70-80s of the last century. At the end of his career, Shunin had a chance to become a champion with Dynamo, but his dreams of gold were dashed in that very match in Krasnodar. At the end of the 2023/24 season, the club did not renew the contract with the veteran, who spent a year without a team and decided to retire in May 2025.
