Lucas Leiva retired from football at the age of 36 due to heart problems, Luis Suarez, Steven Gerrard and Philippe Coutinho paid tribute.
Lucas has not been able to train since December, because during pre-season checks, Gremio found irregularities in his heart.
After three months of recovery and further tests, it was decided that Lucas needed to retire from professional football, telling reporters at a press conference on Friday that “my health comes first.”
The midfielder then thanked his three clubs — Gremio, Liverpool and Lazio, as well as his family, coaches, teammates and fans for their role in his long career.
And the news of Lucas’ retirement was greeted with both pride and sadness by his loved ones, including Suarez, who joined him at Gremio in December.
Amigo @LucasLeiva87 felicitaciones por tu maravillosa carrera! ❤️
Siempre te vamos a estar apoyando, a vos y a tu familia
Éxitos para todo lo que viene que será mejor seguro! 🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/mwFFN5Jwqy
— Luis Suárez (@LuisSuarez9) March 17, 2023
“Friend, congratulations on a wonderful career!” he tweeted.
“We will always support you and your family. Good luck with everything that will happen, it will definitely be better!”
As one of the first Brazilian players to transfer to Anfield, and by the time they arrived already a veteran of the team, Lucas played a key role in getting players like Coutinho and Roberto Firmino to settle in the club.
Coutinho has played 101 matches with his compatriot from Liverpool and Brazil, and on Instagram praised him as a “winner on and off the field.”
Bu gönderiyi Instagram’da gör
“My brother, what an honor and pleasure to play with you. He has always been an example for me. A winner on and off the field,” he wrote.
“May you achieve great success and be very happy at this new stage of your life. I love you, Captain.
Suarez and Coutinho were joined by Steven Gerrard, Martin Skrtel and Jose Enrique, who hailed Lucas’ career in their Instagram stories.
The same thing happened with the current Liverpool loanee Arthur, who broke into Gremio after Lucas’ departure, and another former teammate, Dani Pacheco.
“Congratulations on a great career, Lucas. An example for everyone,” Arthur wrote.
“May your path remain enlightened as it has always been!”
Pacheco ‘s message read: “Congratulations on your career, Lucas, I am very glad to meet you and your wife.
“A perfect footballer and an incredible person. I wish you all the best.”
Bu gönderiyi Instagram’da gör
Lucas’ lengthy Instagram post confirming his retirement was met with similar responses, and the likes of Adam Lallana, Ryan Babel and Simon Mignolet paid tribute.
“Lukinya’s wonderful career! Congratulations!” Fabio Aurelio wrote.
“You will definitely continue to win, no matter what the choice for the next step is, because it’s you! Health and success always!”
Jay Spearing added: “What a career friend! Good luck with everything that comes next!”
The club ‘s statement reads: “Everyone connected with Liverpool would like to wish Lucas all the best in his next chapter.”
