Van Nistelrooy thinks of retirement
Ruud van Nistelrooy says he is contemplating retiring from football this summer as his playing days draw to a close.
The Málaga striker, who will be 36-years-old in July, insists that he has not taken any decision as yet but is likely to make up his mind in April, given his contract with the Costa del Sol club expires at the end of June.
A report in AS claims the Dutchman rates the chances of prolonging his playing career at 50/50 but maintains he has still to discuss the situation with his club and boss Manuel Pellegrini, saying he needs to ‘sit down and think about it before making a final decision’.
If van Nistelrooy does decide to hang up his boots it would bring to an end an illustrious career that saw him become top goalscorer in three different European domestic leagues and brought him a rake of honours.
Having started his career in 1993 in his native Holland with second division side Den Bosch, he went on to play for Heerenveen and PSV Eindhoven before making a dream move to Manchester United in summer 2001. After five years at Old Trafford, where he scored 150 goals in 219 appearances in all competitions, van Nistelrooy joined Real Madrid and his four years at the Santiago Bernabéu yielded a further 64 goals in 96 starts.
A loan spell with Hamburg followed before he was signed on a permanent deal in August, 2010, and after spending a year in the Bundesliga he moved to Málaga at the start of this season to kick-start owner Sheikh Abdullah Al-Thani’s ambitious project.
To make sure you don't miss any of A Different League's Spanish coverage this season, follow the La Liga dedicated Twitter feed: @differentliga
Related Articles
|