Mikel Arteta has confirmed his intention to end his playing career a day after playing his final match for Arsenal, saying he came to the painful conclusion this season that he's no longer good enough to play at the top level.
Artet, 34, bid a tear-filled farewell to the Emirates on Sunday after the 4-0 win over Aston Villa that secured a second-place finish for the club above local rivals Tottenham Hotspur and marked his final game of a five-year Arsenal stint as his contract expires this summer.
The Spanish midfielder said after the game he is "99 percent sure" it was the last game of his career, and he is weighing up three different offers to go into coaching.
Sunday's appearance was Arteta's first since January after an injury-plagued season, but he had been regularly left out of the squad even when fit, and he said he realised it was time to call it quits.
"It is very hard to stop but I wanted to leave it.... I wanted to decide and I thought for the last few months I wasn't good enough to represent this club on the pitch," he said in The Guardian. "You have to accept it. It's been a long time to be playing football and I didn't want to cheat them or anyone. It is time.
"You have to be honest with yourself. That's why I haven't been upset with the manager, I have been upset with myself. For me to play at this club you have to be the best in your position. When you lose that, I think you should be away from this place.
"I have probably been here too long. In the last few months, I probably didn't deserve to be here but at least I got the chance [against Villa] to stay in touch with them and it has been amazing. For me, the standards you need to play for this club, it cannot be eight out of 10, it has to be 10 out of 10. When you cannot deliver that, it is not good enough."
Arteta has been working on his coaching badges while still at Arsenal, and Arsene Wenger has said he could offer the Spaniard a role at the club if a suitable position opens up this summer. But Pep Guardiola is also interested in making Arteta part of his backroom staff at Manchester City next season, while Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has also expressed interest in his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate.
"It is very unusual to have opportunities at this level. That has made me think it was probably time [to retire] and the way I have been watching football in the last few months -- or, probably, over a year -- it was not as a player, it was more as a coach. Then, you have to think about it," Arteta said. "I don't want to [name] clubs but I have three very different options and I am very proud, because it is not common. I have been left the door very open [at Arsenal] and I may have to make a decision."
The tributes to Arteta from his Arsenal teammates also continued to pour in.
"We feel really grateful for him," fellow Spaniard Santi Cazorla told the club's official website. "He's been crucial for us and especially for me, as he's helped me a lot since I got here. I only have grateful words for him and I wish him the best on his next football adventure."