Micah Richards: Ex-England defender retires from football
Richards celebrates his goal for England against Israel, aged 19 years and 76 days. He is England's sixth-youngest scorer after Wayne Rooney, Michael Owen, Marcus Rashford, Tommy Lawton and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Former England defender Micah Richards has announced his retirement from professional football.
The 31-year-old has been hampered by a persistent knee injury and last played for Aston Villa in October 2016.
Villa released him this summer and he is set to combine punditry work with a promotional role at Manchester City, the club where he made his name.
Richards played 295 games for City, Fiorentina and Villa and won 13 England caps between 2006 and 2012.
He made his senior international debut aged 18 and remains England's youngest defender, scoring one goal for his country - against Israel in September 2007.
A right-back or centre-back, he won the 2011 FA Cup and 2011-12 Premier League with City, whom he joined from Oldham as a 14-year-old.
He quickly became a fans' favourite at City after making his debut aged 17 in 2005, and was known for his pace and power.
After playing 245 games for the club, he spent a season on loan with Fiorentina in 2014-15, then left on a free transfer in 2015 to sign a four-year contract with Villa, which ended in June.
A City spokesman said: "Everyone at the club still thinks very fondly of Micah. The fans love him to bits and we are looking forward to working with him at events home and abroad in the future."
Richards made his City debut aged 17 in October 2005 and he scored his first goal for the club four months later, a last minute-equaliser in front of the BBC cameras in a live FA Cup fifth-round tie at Aston Villa
Richards (front) played right-back in 29 of City's 38 league games in their 2011-12 Premier League title-winning season
Richards joined Fiorentina on a season-long loan in September 2014 and played 19 times for the Serie A side
Richards played his last game for Villa in a 1-1 draw with Wolves on 15 October 2016, in Steve Bruce's first game in charge of the club
Source: bbc.com
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