Man City ace makes surprise retirement announcement
No matter who you are time waits for no one, and to that end one Man City legend has announced their retirement.
When players have left an indelible mark on their club, it’s often difficult to imagine life without them, however, when age starts to catch up then loss of form can often creep in and influence wanes as a result.
The best thing to do is to bow out at the very top so that the legend is assured, and that’s exactly what Steph Houghton appears to be doing.
Man City ace Steph Houghton announces retirement
According to Sky Sports, the 36-year-old will retire from all forms of the game at the end of this season.
There’s something I need to tell you… ?
2/2Full Statement: https://t.co/E0wvZJ299N pic.twitter.com/gBvSzenF0Z
— Steph Houghton MBE (@stephhoughton2) March 27, 2024
A stalwart for club and country (121 caps for England), she will clearly be a huge miss.
It isn’t clear if her decision has also been influenced by the care she has to provide for husband Stephen Darby, who has motor neurone disease which will get progressively worse. She paid a huge tribute to him in her announcement.
What is clear is that Houghton has been a trailblazer for women’s football.
She has been in the game for over 15 years, and during that time the light that has shone on women’s football in England has got ever brighter.
There’s little doubt that this has been thanks to the likes of Steph Houghton and her England colleagues.
Women’s games are now often taking place at the stadiums of their male counterparts with fans turning up in their tens of thousands to watch.
That level of interest can only have been dreamed about when Houghton first took to the pitch in earnest, but it certainly bodes well for the future.
As for Steph Houghton’s future the world will be her oyster come the summer, and there will surely be no shortage of offers.
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