Spain great Villa to retire at end of season

Spain’s all-time top scorer David Villa announced on Wednesday he is retiring from football at the end of the Japanese top flight season.

Villa, who has been playing in Japan with Vissel Kobe since the beginning of this year, made the announcement with a statement on his official Twitter account as well as calling a news conference.

“After 19 years as a professional, I have decided to retire from playing football at the end of this season. Thank you to all the teams, coaches and teammates that have allowed me to enjoy this dream career,” he wrote.