Benedetto: I nearly retired, here’s why I stayed and my next move | OneFootball

After a return to Argentine football that didn’t go as he had hoped, following stints with Querétaro in Liga MX and Olimpia of Paraguay, Darío Benedetto terminated his contract with Newell’s at the end of October. Accumulating disappointments since leaving Boca in July of last year, the 35-year-old striker admitted he had thought more than once about retirement, even coming close to making the decision, but revealed what made him change his mind and look forward to opportunities to continue his career.

“I got fed up with certain habits that football has picked up nowadays. Drama, business, it doesn’t matter. But I’ll always love it, because I’m very grateful to football,” he explained in an interview with ESPN F90. He added: “I almost retired. But I set myself the goal, through therapy, to stretch it a bit longer and retire on a good note.”

Pipa said he decided to seek help from a psychologist during his time at Olympique de Marseille, the French football giant that marked his first experience in European football and also his first farewell from Xeneize, months after the painful defeat to River in the 2018 Copa Libertadores final that was decided at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

“I’ve been in therapy for six or seven years. Highly recommended. I think every football player should do therapy. I started in France, because adapting there was very hard for me. Not to the football, but to life, to the language,” emphasized the striker who came up through Arsenal de Sarandí.

Regarding his desire to continue his career, Benedetto assured that he has no intention of leaving Argentine football, but explained what his priorities are: “I’m going to lean towards clubs that don’t have drama, because in recent years I’ve spent all my time complaining. I want to enjoy playing football,” he said.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.