Appiah retires from active football
 

Former Black Stars captain Stephen Appiah has officially announced his retirement from active football.

Appiah 34, who started his professional football career with Accra Hearts of Oak, in a press statement said “after two decades and over of what has been an illustrious professional football career, I formally announce with deep nostalgia my retirement from football.

“I wish this day never came because football was life- my life. It made me whole.

“From the sandy pitches at Indafa park in Accra where my career was honed to the grassy green field in Turin, Italy where my career blossomed, i tell with profound humility a great true story of a Ghanaian patriot who with nothing, from nothing, rose to become a global icon due to the power of football.”

He added “I retire today with a great measure of fulfillment not just because i bowed out high as captain of the Black Stars but because i bowed out serving my country with honour and selfless dedication in what was, is and will always be the most important sport or activity in Ghana.

“In my service, I made mistakes. I probably stepped on some toes; I definitely annoyed others and broke many Ghanaian hearts for not winning a trophy  in my tenure even though we came close many times.

“Though under my tenure we achieved the single most important dream of qualifying Ghana to the World Cup in Germany 2006, we also shattered many Ghanaian hopes of reaching the semi-final, in South Africa 2010.

“Africa was down. Ghana was down. And we the players were down too. I remember that episode with a great deal of pain but for a game that holds no certainty one can only grieve in silence and move on,” he added.

He said “as I close the chapter on my playing career, I want to thank God for how far he has brought me.

“I thank my family for the support, my team-mates both Ghanaians and other nationals, great and intelligent managers that I had the pleasure of learning from and most importantly the numerous fans that cared passionately about me.” 

Appiah, however noted that he is genuinely excited about his achievements and opened to possibilities with whatever football had to offer him.

Appiah, led Ghana to her first World Cup appearance in 2006 and also played a key role at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa where Ghana finished in the quarter finals.


SOURCE: GNA