Gerard Pique – ‘If it wasn’t for Barcelona, I would have retired at the age of 30’

Barcelona legend Gerard Pique has assured that it was only his love of the club that kept him going during the final portion of his career. The 37-year-old retired suddenly in November of last season, foregoing much of his wages remaining on his contract to adi the club’s finances.

The central defender spent 15 years in the Barcelona first team, having left the academy as a teenager to join Manchester United, returning in 2008 after four years at the Red Devils, albeit one of them was spent on loan at Real Zaragoza. He was asked if he had the chance to go to Manchester United or Manchester City at any point in his career after returning to Catalonia.

“No, no, not really. There was a moment in my career, when I was like 30, where I don’t think I would’ve played for any other team if it wasn’t Barcelona. Because I was, not tired, but the career was already long, and for me Barcelona was everything. If not, playing for another club, the last four or five years I played because it was Barcelona, I’m not sure I would have found the motivation to keep going. I would have retired,” he told BBC 5 Live.

Pique has not been out of the headlines since retiring. His sports event company Kosmos are being investigated as part of ‘Operation Brody’, a police investigation into misuse of funds and corruption at the Royal Spanish Football Federation, as the facilitator in a deal to take the Spanish Supercup to Saudi Arabia. Equally, he is behind the King’s League project with streamer Ibai Llanos, and many still tip him to be Barcelona president one day.