Arsenal and Spain icon Santi Cazorla has announced that he has played his final season of professional football, hanging up his boots at the age of 41. A player who seduced a number of fanbases with his technical talent, he spent his final year at boyhood club Real Oviedo in La Liga.Cazorla made his professional debut at Villarreal after coming through the Oviedo academy, with spells at Recreativo and Malaga before making his switch to Arsenal. Five years in London were blighted by injury, but Cazorla did return to action after almost losing a leg to an infection following an operation. He would then return to Villarreal, and spent three years at Al-Sadd in Qatar, before eventually returning to Oviedo in 2023.During his career he won two FA Cups, the Qatari Cup twice, the Qatari League Cup and two Euros with Spain. He was capped 81 times for La Roja, scoring 15 goals, although he also missed out on the 2010 World Cup victory due to injury.Cazorla announces retirement on social mediaImage via Cordon Press. Cazorla announces retirement.On Thursday morning, Cazorla announced his retirement with an emotional video on social media, with the following words.“We think life goes in circles, until we realise that some stories don’t end. They just bring you back to the beginning, like a figure eight. My story didn’t begin in a great stadium or under the bright lights; it started on an ordinary pitch, with a ball and a boy who just wanted to play football. Little by little, I carved out my path. I experienced wonderful things… and I also faced unexpected, difficult moments. But I never stopped trying. And in the end, I returned. Not to bring things to a close, but to feel it all over again. To remember why I started.”pic.twitter.com/PwBRnoPNpf— Santi Cazorla (@19SCazorla) July 2, 2026“Now, as the lights dim, the boots are hung up, and the roar fades into silence, everything falls into place. The ending was right here at home, in the very spot where the magic began. Because some stories don’t simply end; they stay with you forever. Like the number 8 – like infinity.”Cazorla had fairytale end to careerImage via Yahoo Noticias. Cazorla in action for Real Oviedo.Cazorla did get to end his career with a flourish, albeit his final season did not go to plan. At the age of 38, he returned to Oviedo in a bid to get them back up to La Liga after a 24-year hiatus from the first division, in which the club twice came close to extinction and spent time in the third tier. Last summer, Oviedo secured a dramatic return to La Liga in the play-offs, captained by Cazorla, and he got to fulfil his dream of playing in La Liga for Los Carbayones, even if it did end in relegation.The post Arsenal and Spain icon Santi Cazorla announces retirement at 41 appeared first on CaughtOffside.