Czech Republic number one shot stopper Petr Cech has officially retired from international football. Cech was in action for his country between the sticks at the European Championship in France but failed to qualify past the group stage.
The Chelsea legend in action for his country at the European Championship in France
The 34-year-old made his debut for his country’s senior team in 2002 and has since made 124 appearances. He established himself in the squad during the 2002 U21 European Championships when he let in only one of the penalty kicks against France, a heroic performance that gave his country its first European Championship youth title. He also helped his country reach the semi-finals of the UEFA European Football Championship in 2004.
In an interview with Arsenal's website, he said:
“I’ve been playing in the national team for 14 years. We always qualified for the big tournaments.
“I’ve had so many club games to play year-by-year too, and I think I’ve reached the point where I believe that if I want to continue doing things to 100 per cent every day, like I’ve always done, then I will probably need more time to rest and recover.
“This is a purely football-based decision. If I want to prolong my career and play at the highest level for as long as I can, then I will probably need to find the balance so that I can continue to do so.
“I’m now 34 and the next [international] tournament is in two years which, in football, is a very long time. The last thing I wanted to do was start a campaign and then say ‘I don’t think it’s right for me to continue’ halfway through it.
“I’ve made fantastic memories and I will keep them. But as I said, you cannot stop time and sometimes you need to make decisions looking to the future. I believe it is the right move.
“When I was a kid, my ultimate dream was to play for the national team at least once.”
Confirming his retirement the Arsenal goalkeeper tweeted:
We lived some amazing moments together - Wishing the team all the best for the future #CZE pic.twitter.com/w1BT91BhbT
— Petr Cech (@PetrCech) July 8, 2016
This was followed by a well wishes message from his current club, Arsenal:
.@PetrCech has announced his international retirement - congratulations on a record-breaking career withpic.twitter.com/URVJvgvDFa
— Arsenal FC (@Arsenal) July 8, 2016
And the reactions on Twitter were priceless:
— Alex Veltchev (@alexveltchev) July 8, 2016
Petr Cech has retired from international football. One of Europe's great keepers. #cze will miss him, no doubt his club career will benefit
— John Cross (@johncrossmirror) July 8, 2016
Petr Cech announces international retirement after 124 appearances
— Colin NOT Collins (@ColinUdoh) July 8, 2016
@Arsenal @PetrCech Will always be a legend in everyone's eyes. All the best to him at Arsenal and hopefully many happy days to come.
— ZC (@Zeus_Cannon) July 8, 2016
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