Gera retires from professional football

The 39-year-old, 97-time Hungary international midfielder has announced the end of his career in the professional game.

Hungary’s most successful footballer this century, Zoltán Gera, has retired from the professional game. After starting his professional career in 1997, Gera went on to win three Hungarian league titles, five Hungarian Cups, three domestic Super Cups and one League Cup with Ferencváros, whom he joined in July 2000 from boyhood club Pécsi MFC. He was voted Hungarian Player of the Year in 2002, 2004 and 2005, NB I Player of the Year in 2016 and his goal for Hungary against Portugal in Euro 2016 was voted the tournament’s best goal.

In between two stints at Hungary’s most successful club,

Gera spent ten years in the top two divisions of English football, moving to West Bromwich Albion in 2004 and spending three years at Fulham FC from 2008 to 2011, during which time the club reached the Europa League final in 2010,

before another three-year period back at the West Country club until 2014 when he returned to Hungary. The run to the Europa League final was particularly special, Gera scoring twice against Juventus, and once against both Shakhtar Donetzk and Hamburg, as well as making several assists, before his team’s dream run finally came to an end after extra-time against Atlético Madrid.

The mercurial midfield playmaker suffered two serious knee injuries during his career but despite this,

he still made 97 appearances for Hungary (only Gábor Király and József Bozsik have made more),

scoring 26 goals for his nation including a hat-trick against San Marino in October 2002. Hi last appearance came away against Portugal in March 2017, after which recovery from his second serious knee injury proved to be insurmountable.