The last couple of years have marked the end of a golden era with some of the best players and managers in the world of football bidding adieu to the sport.
The fans of the sport saw the end of the likes of Pirlo, Xavi, Steven Gerrard and more and it is not getting any better for the lovers of the game.
According to reports today, the world of football is set to lose one of the greatest players to ever play the sport at the end of the season.
Arguably the most decorated midfielder in Europe at the moment, Xabi Alonso, has decided to call it quits to his playing career at the end of the current Bundesliga season.
The 35-year old Spanish midfielder is currently playing for Bayern Munich, a club he joined for in 2014 and is fighting hard to help them to his third successive domestic titles.
But that run of form is nothing new for the midfielder who did something similar in his time at Real Madrid.
The midfielder started his playing career as a teenager at the Spanish outfit Real Sociedad and slowly grew into the first team at the club in the top flight domestic season in Spain.
He slowly got selected to the national side and also earned himself a £10.7m to Liverpool under Rafa Benitez. He rose into the limelight at Anfield having provided the Merseyside outfit with some memorable moments.
He won the Champions League and the FA Cup in his time in England but growing into one of the best midfielders in the world, he inevitably made a move back to Spain with Spanish giants Real Madrid luring him away from Anfield.
After 9 years in England, Alonso moved to the Bernabeu and was an instant hit as he helped them to some important victories in his first season at the club.
He cost real around the £30m mark but his performances made him a bargain in a matter of months.
After winning the league title in Spain with Real, Alonso also wanted a taste of the Bundesliga and was snapped up by Pep Guardiola at Bayern, his current club.
He joined the German outfit on a two-year deal and though he made a slow start to his time in Germany, he became a hit with the fans slowly and is one of the most respected players in the team at the moment.
He extended his contract till 2017 at the end of the previous season but that contract seems to be his last as he has now decided to end his playing career.
Here is a list of every major honor that he has won for the club and the country:
Liverpool
Champions League: 2004–05
Super Cup: 2005
FA Cup: 2005–06
FA Community Shield: 2006
Real Madrid
Champions League: 2013–14
La Liga: 2011–12
Copa del Rey: 2010–11, 2013–14
Supercopa de España: 2012
Bayern Munich
Bundesliga: 2014–15, 2015–16
DFB-Pokal: 2015–16
DFL-Supercup: 2016
Spain
FIFA World Cup: 2010
European Championship: 2008, 2012
Do you think Xabi Alonso is one of the best midfielders to have ever played the game?