Tearful Abidal ends Barcelona playing career

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