Melanie Serrano retires: 'It's been a privilege'

A legend is retiring. This Friday, a tearful Melanie Serrano has announced that after 18 years at FC Barcelona she has “made the most difficult decision because my life story has always been tied to this club”, but she has finally come to the conclusion that it is time to hang up her boots.

Her current tally of 516 appearances is a record for the team, but she now realises that "I no longer give what I want to the team.” She thanked everyone at the club with whom she has shared the best part of two decades, with a special mention for Xavi Llorens. "I started here as a little girl and I am leaving with a family” she said. “But it has been a privilege to do what I like best every day.”

The star of the 2013 Liga title went to explain that “I have been offered the chance to work on a new project, and I will be putting all of my soul into doing it as well as I possibly can. I am a fighter, responsible, dedicated and loyal to my colours, and on this project I’ll be able to show everything that I have learned while I was here.”

Asked how women’s football has changed since 2004, the Andalusian said that “it is like day and night. Now we are at a very important time for making other sports important too and to understand that a woman can compete and earn as much as a man.”