Javier Mascherano retires

Former FC Barcelona player Javier Mascherano has decided to bring an end to his career as a footballer. On Sunday, November 15, the Argentine, who was a Barça player from 2010 to 2018, announced his retirement.

The Argentine began his career at River Plate (2003-05) and later played for Corinthians (2005-06). He would then arrive in the Premier League to play for West Ham (2006-07) and only one year later, he would sign for Liverpool (2007-10), where he played for three seasons before signing for Barça. After seven and a half seasons as a culé, Mascherano went to Hebei China Fortune (2018-19) before retiring in his native country, at Estudiantes de la Plata. He also played a total of 147 games for the Argentine national team, scoring three goals.

Seven and a half years of titles at Barça

Javier Mascherano was presented as a Barça player on August 30, 2010. After seven and a half years of wearing the Barça shirt, 'El Jefecito' earned 18 titles in a golden period for the club. Mascherano played 334 games for Barça and played under Pep Guardiola, Tito Vilanova, Tata Martino, Luis Enrique and Ernesto Valverde.

Five coaches who saw in Mascherano a mixture of passion and tactical nous. His debut for Barça came on September 11, 2010 in a league match against Hercules at the Camp Nou. Though he came as a midfielder, injuries to defenders saw Mascherano go on to play as the axis of the defence. Indeed, he helped win the Champions League at Wembley in 2011 playing as a centere-back.

From then on, Javier Mascherano played mainly in defence, and alternated to midfield on occasion. He scored one goal for Barça, in the match against Osasuna in the 2016/17 season, the No.14 smashing home a penalty. The Argentine is the foreign player with the fourth highest amount of games played for the club, behind Leo Messi, Phillip Cocu and Dani Alves.