Roma legend Francesco Totti has finally confirmed his retirement as a player and announced he is to become a director of the Italian club.
The 40-year-old, who played his final game in May after a one-club career spanning 24 years, had hinted he could continue his playing career abroad.
But he has now released a statement saying that he has new role at the club he first joined as schoolboy.
“The first part of my life, as a player, has ended,” Totti said.
“But now I’m heading into an equally important part, hoping to do as well as I did on the field.”
Totti made his debut as a 16-year-old in 1993 and won Serie A once, in 2001. The forward’s 786th and final appearance for Roma was as a substitute in a 3-2 league win over Genoa.
“I never wanted that game to end, that day to end,” said Totti, who is Roma’s all-time leading goalscorer with 307 in all competitions.
“Now I’ll try to make myself available… from the youth team to the president. It might take six months, a year, two years… I don’t know how long it will take to find the role I prefer.”