Farewell Andrea Pirlo, Football’s last artist in an era of Athletes

The iconic playmaker has announced that he has retired from football - he'll go down in history as an all-time great and one of the last of his kind

Italy have produced some magnificent midfielders over the years. Valentino and Sandro Mazzola, Gianni Rivera, Giancarlo Antognoni, Marco Tardelli, Rino Gattuso, Daniele De Rossi – the list goes on and on. But one player trumps all of these stars, the maestro that is Andrea Pirlo.

On Monday, in an emotional post on his Twitter page, Pirlo announced that he had retired from football.

Since making his Serie A debut for hometown club Brescia at the age of just 16, Pirlo has wowed audiences all over the world.

Football is so tribal, especially in Italy, that it is very rare to find a world-class player who transcends club colours and national boundaries. Along with the likes of Javier Zanetti, Paolo Maldini and Gianluigi Buffon, Pirlo is adored by almost everyone.

He is adored because he is so unique. Instantly recognisable - with or without his flowing locks and trademark beard - to watch L'architetto (The Architecht) effortlessly glide around the pitch, moving the ball and his team-mates like a chess-master and curling home stylish free-kicks is pure beauty.

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