Adel Taarabt announces retirement from football | OneFootball

Former Queens Park Rangers and Tottenham Hotspur player Adel Taarabt has announced his retirement from football at the age of 37.

The Moroccan made his professional debut for French side Lens before going on to join Tottenham Hotspur. However, it was at QPR where he really made a name for himself with some magical moments and spectacular strikes along the way.

Taarabt eventually had two loan moves away from Loftus Road with Fulham and then AC Milan. After a further season he ended up at Benfica and after loan spells at Genoa in Italy he became a regular for the Portuguese side.

The mercurial player left European football at the end of the 2021/22 season and finished his career in the UAE, first with Al-Nasr and then with Al-Sharjah.

"I knew this day would come: the time has come to close this chapter," Taarabt said in a statement. 

"Football has been such an important part of my life for so many years. It has given me wonderful memories, allowed me to meet incredible people and experience moments I will never forget."

"I just want to say thank you to every team I played for, every manager, every team-mate, every member of staff and, of course, every fan who showed me affection along the way. To all the teams I had the honour of representing, from Lens to Sharjah, thank you for being part of my story."