Gerard Piqué announced his retirement: read the letter he shared with the fans.

Gerard Piqué's football level has noticeably declined this season and, to everyone's surprise, the center-back announced that he will retire from professional football. At 35 years old, the defender indicated that this weekend he will play his last match with the Barcelona shirt at Camp Nou.

Through a video posted on his social media, the experienced athlete expressed his feelings. "For weeks, months, many people have been talking about me. Until now, I haven't said anything, but now I want to be the one to talk about myself," he started.

"Like many of you, I have always been a Barcelona fan. I was born into a very football-loving and culé family. From a very young age, I didn't want to be a football player, I wanted to be a Barca player," he added.

Immediately, Piqué linked his present with his childhood: "Lately, I have thought a lot about that child, about what that Gerard would have thought if they had told him that he would fulfill all his dreams: that he would reach the first team of Barca, that he would win all possible titles, that he would be a champion of Europe and the world, that he would play alongside the best in history, that he would be one of the captains, that he would make lifelong friends," he said.

Then, the defender made the unexpected announcement: "25 years ago I joined Barcelona. I left and came back. Football has given me everything, Barca has given me everything. You, culés, have given me everything. And now that the dreams of that child have come true, I want to tell you that it is time to close this circle. I have always said that after Barca there would be no other team, and that will be the case. This Saturday will be my last match at Camp Nou (against Almería)," he said.

"I will become just another culé, I will cheer on the team and I will transmit the love for Barca to my children, just as my family did with me. You already know me, sooner or later I will be back. See you at Camp Nou. Long live Barca, always," Gerard Piqué concluded.