Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has announced he will retire from football at the end of the season.
The 35-year-old has spent the entirety of his club career at Anfield, having made his debut for in 1997.
"This will be my last season at Liverpool and my last as a professional footballer," Carragher confirmed.
"I'm making this announcement now because I don't want the manager or the club to be answering questions on my future when I've already decided what I am going to do.
Carragher was named man of the match at Arsenal last week
"I will be fully committed between now and the end of the season to doing the very best for Liverpool Football Club, as I've done my entire career since joining aged just nine-years-old.
"It has been a privilege and an honour to represent this great club for as long as I have and I am immensely proud to have done so and thankful for all the support I have had. There are many memories I want to share and people to thank, but now is not the time for that.
"I won't be making any further comment on this decision until the end of the season; all our focus and concentration should be on achieving the best possible finish in the league this season and trying to win the last remaining trophy we are competing in."
A member of the club's 1996 FA Youth Cup-winning team, he made his first-team debut in January 1997 against Middlesbrough and has played 723 times for the club. He is second only to Ian Callaghan in club's all-time appearance table.
A boyhood Everton fan, Carragher has won two League Cups, two FA Cups, a Uefa Cup and a Champions League winners' medal with Liverpool.
