Giorgio Chiellini retirement: Should Juventus star retire at the end of the season?

Start doing something, gain experience, earn the name and fame, grow old, and then call time on your career — it is all the same story again in every profession. And footballers are no different in that respect.

Once footballers grow old, their market values drop and people start calling them veterans. Dejected and sometimes haunted by the memories of recent failures, they finally decide to hang the boots. It’s all the same story yet again.

But there remains a stark contrast. It is how much of an appreciation a player would get after calling time on his career. People don’t forget what a professional does for their beloved club so easily; the ones that throw their life to defend the honour of a club’s crest get more appreciated by fans than others.

Retiring from football is a special event in any footballer’s storied career, and it’s the fans’ love and thankfulness that makes the day more special. So, why are we having this discussion at the moment?

Here is the story…

You should be aware of this by now as it is one of the hottest topics crossing the lips of every Juventus fan.

But if you are unaware, let’s tell you that Giorgio Chiellini, according to a report published in Gazzetta dello Sport (via Calciomercato), is ‘seriously’ considering retiring from professional football at the end of the ongoing 2020-21 campaign. Are you really shocked?

The rumours of Chiellini’s imminent retirement from football burst into life as soon as Juventus got knocked out of this season’s Champions League following a 4-4 aggregate scoreline that secured Porto’s progression on the away-goal rule and Juve’s continuous curse in the competition.

Chiellini was witnessing his dreams of lifting his maiden UCL title getting torn apart by the Dragões of Portugal. He was crying out orders — not on the field but from the substitute bench (he was too unfit to start the significant fixture).

His cajoling words did enough to encourage his peers and get Juventus back in the tie but not enough to get the business done within the regulated time.

Had Chiellini been present on the field, would Juventus have conceded that penalty and would the Old Lady have to suffer yet another round-of-16 elimination? The odd thing is that we would never know these answers.

Chiellini has been an awe-inspiring figure for Juventus

Signed by the Bianconeri in 2005, Chiellini has done both — surviving the horror days as well as cherishing the golden days at the Turin-based club.

Joining Juventus, Chiellini had to suffer relegation at the end of the Serie A 2005-06 campaign. Winning nine consecutive Scudettos would have been just a mere illusion for the aspiring defender back then.

In the following season, Juve achieved promotion. And at the end of the 2011-2012 campaign, Chiellini had to kiss the Serie A title for the first time in what was going to be a long and magnificent career.

Since that date, Chiellini and Juventus have been on the same, never losing a Serie A title along the way. Besides nine successive Scudettos, the Pisa-born centre-half has also added five Super Coppa Italiana and four Coppa Italia titles to his Juventus trophy cabinet.

Over the years, he has had been a brick wall in Juventus’ defence. And alongside helping Juve craft records, he has successfully elevated his individual name and game. People around the world now knows who Giorgio Chiellini is.

Why would it be the right decision for him to retire at the end of the season?

With now sources confirming that the 36-year-old defender is considering hanging his boots, we should now be looking at why it would be the decision for him to step down at the end of the 2020-21 campaign.

The first aspect one could choose to make this augment spicy is Chiellini’s growing age. The Italian defender, currently 36, will turn 37 next August. While some may say age is just a number, ageing has had left its own marks on Chiellini’s playing career in the past two seasons.

Injuries were never a huge factor in Chiellini’s game up until the initial stage of the 2019-20 campaign. In August 2019, Chiellini suffered a horrendous ACL injury that eventually required surgery on his right knee.

As a result of that ruptured tissue, He missed around 32 games (as per Transfermarkt.com) in a regular season. In case you are wondering, he made only four appearances for Juventus that season. And since then, injuries and fitness issues have crept into his game, shortening his playing time to a notable extent.

Thanks to those injuries and lack of fitness, Chiellini has had to make just eight outings in Serie A this term — this is a very diminutive number of games, given his extraordinary qualities, valuable experience, and relentless work-rate.

While some could say he is not past his best yet (and perhaps, they might be right), it’s the ever-increasing age and the injuries and the subsequent fatigue that is enough to hold an athlete of Chiellini’s ilk back from reaching the peak of their games.

Keeping that in mind, it would be better for Chiellini, who has already achieved so much as a Juve professional, to step down so that the world can spectate the rise of another ‘Giorgio Chiellini’.

Why could he keep playing for a little longer?

It is obvious that a 36-year-old, who has had given this much to the club he loves, would want to retire after yet another dommed season in Europe. But for Chiellini, it holds a different reminiscence.

When asked by Martina Colombari about his future last June, Chiellini told:

"“Future plans? I will play another year, then I’ll see how I feel and how my legs hold up. I could retire next summer or have another season after that. I would like to continue in the world of football, probably more a directorial role than management, but you never know in life.”"

Chellini’s contract at Juventus is set to run out in the upcoming summer. But after we have seen Chiellini, when played by Andrea Pirlo, throwing his bodies in the line of fire, Juventus are expected to be more than happy to offer him another extension.

Now, let’s come to why he should continue playing for as long as he can. In order to begin the discussion, let’s say he is the most crucial player for Juventus when it comes to leadership qualities.

Under Andrea Pirlo, Juventus are trying to rear a dynasty cultivated by a rightful combination of youth and experienced prodigies. Chiellini is a fundamental part of Juve’s experience, as is the 43-year-old Gianluigi Buffon.

Young players such as Radu Drăgușin, Matthijs de Ligt, Merih Demiral, and some other starlets need someone to guide them and help them learn the game. They need a leader like Chiellini in their dressing room, by their side for at least another season.

And if they fortune favours, Chiellini could kiss the long-awaited UEFA Champions League trophy as well. While the player will obviously have the last say on this matter, there are certainly more reasons as to why Giorgio “King Kong” Chiellini should keep playing than quit football.