Cali (Colombia), Jan 21 (IANS) Colombian international and former captain Mario Yepes has declared his retirement a few days after his 40th birthday, ending a career lasting more than 20 years and with nine football clubs.
Yepes played for Cali, River Plate, Nantes, Paris Saint Germain, Chievo, Verona, AC Milan, Atalanta and San Lorenzo and was capped 102 times for the national team, reports Xinhua.
“I would like to thank all the people who have supported me as a player and now I will look on the horizon for opportunities that may arise,” Yepes said at a press conference here on Wednesday.
In 2010, he joined Italian giants AC Milan and won the Serie A title. In 2014, Yepes left Europe and joined San Lorenzo in Argentina.
Yepes was first enrolled in the Colombia national team in 1999, scoring six goals. In the 2014 FIFA World Cup, he led Colombia to the quarter-final.
Yepes won one Categoria Primera A title, two Primera Division titles, one Serie A title and a Copa America champion in a storied career.