Argentina's Otamendi retires from international football

MEXICO CITY: Argentina defender ⁠Nicolas Otamendi announced his retirement from international ​football on ​Thursday, bringing the curtain down on a 17-year career during which he won the 2022 World Cup and two Copa America titles.
The 38-year-old centre back ⁠made 139 appearances for his country ⁠and was part of the squad that reached this year's World Cup final in the United ‌States, in which the ​defending champions were ⁠beaten 1-0 by Spain.
'Today I ​have to write the ‌most difficult words of my career,' Otamendi posted ​on Instagram. 'As fate would have it, my last match was a World Cup final. It wasn't the result we wanted, but I'm leaving ‌with my head held high, knowing that ​this team gave it their all right ​up ‌to ⁠the very last second.
'Thank you, Argentina, for allowing me to fulfil the dream ​of becoming a world champion.'
Otamendi ⁠recently joined Argentine ​giants River Plate after ending a successful 16-year spell in Europe, where he played for Porto, Valencia, Manchester City ​and Benfica.
He represented his country at ​four World Cups. — Reuters