Top 5 footballers who may retire at the end of the season

Zanetti has been an excellent servant for Inter Milan

5. Javier Zanetti- Few players in world football are as loyal as Javier Zanetti. The Argentine defender has been with Inter since 1995, making over 600 appearances for the Nerazzurri in the process.

Zanetti has won a truck load of trophies with the club including 5 consecutive Serie A titles, 4 Coppa Italia’s, 1 Champions League and 1 FIFA Club World Cup. El Tractor is extremely versatile and can play on both sides of the defense along with fitting into the teams midfield positions.

Zanetti’s most successful position was as Inter’s right back where he won praise for his strength and speed along with his ability to support the teams attack when needed. Il Capitano, as he is fondly called by Inter fans, was immortalized in 2004 by Brazilian legend Pele when he included Zanetti in his list of 125 Greatest Living Footballers list as a part of FIFA’s hundredth anniversary.

The 40-year-old has also been ever present for Argentina national team since 1994, amassing 145 caps and winning 2 Copa America’s, 2 Confederation Cups, anSilver Medal in the Olympic games before retiring from international football in 2011 at the age of 38- a stunning achievement indeed. Zanetti celebrated his 700th appearance for Inter in a fairy tale manner when Jose Mourinho led the team to a 2-0 victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League final on 22nd May 2010.

In 2013 Zanetti ruptured his achilles tendon in a match against Palermo which could have ended his playing career. However that was not the case and Zanetti returned for Inter in a match against Livorno on 9th November. This year Zanetti may finally call time on his illustrious career in favor of other talents. Inter will lose a gem if he decides to step down.