Ledley King retires!

The King steps down!

Tottenham Hotspur and former England defender Ledley King has announced his retirement from football due to persistent and chronic knee injuries.
The naturally gifted English centre back has struggled throughout his career with injuries and had even been unable to train on a daily basis.

He will now stay at Spurs in an ambassadorial role. He told the club's website that he's saddened by the fact that he's injuries have hindered his training and cut his career short but is pleased to be continuing to work with the club. Ledley King spent his entire career at the North London club after joining as a trainee and made his debut in 1999 and went on to make 264 league appearances, winning the Carling Cup in 2008, and was club captain.

He also represented England 21 times and was selected to represent England at the 2010 World Cup Squad in South Africa, making his last appearance against the United States.

Speaking on his career at the club he said that he's been at the club since he was a child and that th club is like a second home to him. He continued to say that he's always considered Tottenham his club and would find it hard to wear the shirt of another club. He went on to thank everyone at the club and all the fans and for all of their support and patience through the years and all his difficult periods at the club.

Tottenham chairman, Daniel Levy praised Ledley King's character and how he managed to sustain such high standards of performance on the pitch while still being a fine leader. Spurs have announced that a testimonial will take place at the end of the 2012-13 season for King.

In my opinion Ledley King was arguably the most gifted players pull on a Spurs shirt and probably one of the most gifted centre backs in the game and its sad to see a player of his quality to be retiring at only 30.