A tearful Eric Abidal called an end to his six-year Barcelona playing career on Thursday, less than two months after returning to action from a liver transplant.
"I am going, but I am sure I will be back" in another capacity, the French defender told a news conference at the club, which said it had offered him a role running the club's training schools.
"I would have liked to continue playing for Barca, but the clubs sees things differently and I have to respect that," he said, with tears in his eyes.
Abidal, 33, who made a remarkable recovery from last year's liver transplant to return to first-team action last month, is out of contract at the end of the season. He had said he hoped to continue playing for another couple of years.
"I had two aims -- firstly to fight for the sake of my daughters and see them grow up, and secondly to start playing again," he said of his recovery.
Source: AFP
