Inter Milan captain Javier Zanetti will bring the curtain down on his 22-year playing career at the end of this season, Nerazzurri president Erick Thohir has confirmed.
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caption:Javier Zanetti has played for Inter Milan for 19 years.
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Zanetti, who turns 41 in August, will move into a management position at the San Siro, where he has been since arriving at Inter from Argentine side Banfield in 1995.
There had been rumours earlier this year that Jose Mourinho wanted to sign the versatile midfielder for Chelsea on a one-year deal, although the reports were scotched by both parties.
And Thohir has now confirmed that Zanetti will hang up his boots and head into a backroom position at Inter.
“The meetings with Zanetti have been going on for the last couple of months to understand his vision,” Thohir told journalists at a publicity event on Tuesday. “The discussion is done already, he’ll become part of the management.”
Zanetti is Inter’s all-time leading appearance maker with more than 800 games under his belt while he has won a record number of international caps for Argentina, having represented his country 145 times between 1994 and 2011.
He played at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups and has won 16 major titles in his career including five Serie A titles and a famous league, cup and Champions League double in 2010.