Juan Sebastian Veron Will Retire After Season, According To Agent

Juan Sebastian Veron's agent said on Monday that his client will retire at the end of the season. The 37-year-old has been with Estudiantes since 2007 and when he's played he has ben brilliant, but age has begun to catch up with him and he's been battling injuries all season that have had him in and out of the team.

Veron planned to retire at the end of last year, but he was persuaded by Estudiantes to continue playing. Speculation that he would retire began when he spoke to Laboratorio Pincharrata about the team.

"Besides the fact that I am not feeling 100 per cent, I think that 'El Chino' [Leandro Benitez] and he has to stay in the team. It is not necessary for me to play, I am no longer needed. After that all of us have bad games and in this championship El Chino has had a lot of good ones."

Now his agent has confirmed that the former Lazio and Manchester United player is ready to call it a day. Veron began his career with Estudiantes, before moving to Boca Juniors. There, Veron played with Maradona and caught the eye of Sampdoria, where he went in 1996.

A couple of seasons with Sampdoria later, Veron went to Parma and Lazio. At Lazio, Veron established himself as one of the best players in the world, prompting the Red Devils to buy him. His time with United was not particularly successful and he then went to Chelsea before returning to Italy, with Internazionale, and then Argentina, with Boca Juniors and Estudiantes.

Veron also played a key role with Argentina, although how successful he is is up for debate. He played in the 1998 World Cup and captained the team in 2002, but Argentina were not successful in either and Veron has been blamed for the team's failures. When his international career came to an end last year, it was only after 73 caps and nine goals for his country.

Undoubtedly one of the most electrifying and gifted players in the world, Veron's reputation never quite recovered from his rocky time at Old Trafford. The controversy over his role in Argentina's struggles didn't help his reputation either, but regardless, he will certainly go down as one of the most noteworthy and exciting players of his generation.