Former Arsenal midfielder, Santi Cazorla has called time on his football career at the age of 41, Yankee Scores reports.
The former Spain international won two FA Cups with the Gunners – scoring a free-kick against Hull City in 2014 – and twice won the Euros with his country.
Se retira un doble campeón de Europa.
❤️ por tu fútbol, @19SCazorla.#VamosEspaña pic.twitter.com/YcsPBuxI0f
— Selección Española Masculina de Fútbol (@SEFutbol) July 2, 2026
In 2016 after an operation he developed gangrene and his career was nearly finished.
But amazingly he returned after 11 operations to play on, ending his career with three years at boyhood club Oviedo.
“Now that everything is ending, when the boots are being hung up, and the noise is turning into silence, everything fits together, because the ending wasn’t just anywhere – I was at home,” Cazorla said on X.
— Santi Cazorla (@19SCazorla) July 2, 2026
The club said they would like him to stay in any role or capacity that he chooses and “that makes him happy”.
“Cazorla decided to come back earning the minimum salary allowed by the league and donated all his image rights to the club,” Oviedo said in a statement.
“In return, he only asked that 10 per cent of the sales of his jersey be entirely dedicated to Real Oviedo’s youth academy, to contribute to the growth of future generations.”
