Updated 13.30

VETERAN LIVERPOOL DEFENDER Jamie Carragher will retire from football and leave the club at the end of the season.

Carragher broke the news in a statement this morning, saying that he wished to pre-empt any further speculation on his future by announcing his decision now.

Second only to Ian Callaghan in Liverpool’s all-time appearance list, Carragher, 35, joined the Anfield youth system aged nine. He made his first team debut in January 1997 and went on to make more than 700 senior appearances.

Though a league title eluded him, Carragher was at the heart of the Liverpool side which won the dramatic 2005 Champions League final in Istanbul. He also won a UEFA Cup, two FA Cups and three League Cups.

“This will be my last season at Liverpool and my last as a professional footballer,” his statement read.

I’m making this announcement now because I don’t want the manager or the club to be answering questions on my future when I’ve already decided what I am going to do.

I will be fully committed between now and the end of the season to doing the very best for Liverpool Football Club, as I’ve done my entire career since joining aged just nine-years-old.

It has been a privilege and an honour to represent this great club for as long as I have and I am immensely proud to have done so and thankful for all the support I have had. There are many memories I want to share and people to thank, but now is not the time for that.

I won’t be making any further comment on this decision until the end of the season; all our focus and concentration should be on achieving the best possible finish in the league this season and trying to win the last remaining trophy we are competing in.

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