Ghana football legend Asamoah Gyan announced his retirement from active football on Tuesday (20 June) after sharing his narrative during a panel discussion at the recently concluded Afreximbank Annual Meetings (AAM2023) in Accra.
“It is time… that voice has been clear in my ears, and I have succumbed to it, it is time. It is time to hang the jersey and boots in glory as I retire officially from active football,” he broke down before his audience at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC).
The 37-year-old took the likes of former Ivorian footballer Didier Drogba, who was present on the panel, to console Gyan on stage as the audience erupted with deafening ovation.
Gyan is Ghana’s all-time leading scorer, with 51 goals in 109 games for the Black Stars. Baby Jet, as he is affectionately known, began his professional career in Ghana in 2003 with Liberty Professionals. He has previously played for clubs in France, England, Turkey, China, and the United Arab Emirates.
He was also a member of Ghana’s first World Cup squad in 2006, which finished in the round of 16 and reached the final of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.
Below is a statement Gyan issued after the announcement:
