Khaberni - Former Brazil national team and Barcelona player, Rafinha Alcantara "32 years old", has announced his final retirement from football.
In a video on his official account, Rafinha Alcantara said: "After a time away from the fields, and after a long recovery, today I want to share an important decision for me, the moment to retire from football has come, and just over a year ago I suffered a severe knee injury, which unfortunately prevents me from returning to compete at the highest levels."
He added: "Accepting this was not easy, football has been my life since I became conscious, and understanding that I can't dedicate myself to it as I always did was a difficult process, but over time I also learned to look back with gratitude, what an amazing trajectory, I had the happiness of living in different countries, learning new languages, and experiencing other cultures."
He mentioned Alcantara: "I met people who left a permanent mark on me, shared the locker room with exceptional stars and colleagues, defended the emblems of clubs I admired since childhood, and felt the support and passion of the fans in every stadium I stepped foot in, football gave me unforgettable moments, and allowed me to work with great professionals, who made me realize how lucky and special I was to be able to call myself a football player."
He continued: "My first gift was a football and my childhood memories are playing with my brother and father, for the past twenty years, football has been my routine, my fuel, and my identity, today a new different stage begins, without that special adrenaline of high competition, but it is filled with reasons to smile."
He concluded Rafinha: "I am building a wonderful family, they fill me with pride and happiness, and that was essential in all this process, thank you to my whole family for always being there for me, thank you to everyone for the support and affection and thank you to football for fulfilling great dreams forever."
