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Gerard Pique reveals Bojan Krkic will retire from football aged 32

Mundo Deportivo

 will announce his retirement from football later today at the relatively young age of 32. 

Speaking after a Kings League show, Pique said: “On Thursday Bojan will retire at Camp Nou.”

It was an announcement that took everyone aback. But Bojan's career has gone full circle after he was released by Japanese club 

 Bojan started his senior career at Barcelona in 2007 after graduating from the famous La Masia Academy. He went on to play 163 games scoring 41 goals and 19 assists. 

In 2011, Bojan's nomadic career began after he fell out with 

 and even to the MLS with Montreal Impact. In 2021 he joined Vissel Kobe as a free agent. 

Bojan's early retirement rubberstamps a career that never really lived up to the hype. 

Rijkaard called him a 'treasure' but Guardiola never liked the player - what's happened to Bojan Krkic? Explained

 was considered to be if not more, then at least as talented as 

, it was Bojan who held the "youngest ever" records at 

Yet, despite a meteoric rise, Krkic's career took a steep decline after his move away from Camp Nou. Here's his story.

Bojan made his senior debut for Barcelona at the age of 17 years and 19 days.  

, the coach at that time, had a lot of confidence in the forward and described him as "a treasure". 

The Spaniard would finish his first season at Camp Nou with 12 goals and six assists in 48 matches. At just 17 years.

The following season, though, Barcelona changed coaches. 

 did not put as much faith in Bojan and believed that he needed to gain more experience with the reserves. 

He would go on to play fewer matches from the start and thus have less of an impact in the squad. Eventually, this led to a conflict between the two, and in 2011, Krkic left Barca -- the club he joined when he was only nine years old -- to start a new adventure in Italy.

 as a coach. The Spaniard with Serbian roots had the manager's trust and was his most-used player, but he struggled with consistency. Krkic had a tough time adapting to the defensive Italian league and finished the year with just seven goals.

The 2012/13 season saw 22-year-old Bojan join Milan on loan but things didn't go much better for him at San Siro, finishing his spell there with just 3 goals in 27 games. 

 (32 games, 5 goals), and in 2014, he was permanently sold to 

The forward suffered an ACL injury in the first season in England and would never go on to replicate his Barca form. His spell at Stoke involved two loans -- to 

The La Masia graduate said goodbye to European football in 2019, moving to Montreal Impact in the MLS. In 2021, he moved across the Pacific to join 

However, the Japanese club terminated his contract earlier this month. Bojan also is an occasional columnist at Diario Sport.

What went wrong for Bojan? The forward did suffer a few serious injuries during his first years but it seems like his problems were more on the psychological side -- Krkic could not cope with the pressure and high expectations. 

Bojan was called up by Spain in 2008 but he pulled out due to a panic attack. He also declined the invitation to play at the 2008 Euros due to similar reasons. The Spaniard experienced similar issues during his time in Italy and the Netherlands.

If anything, Bojan's story goes to prove that football is much more than talent and physical attributes. 

As difficult as it may be to believe, the best spell of his career was his early years at Barca. After all, he left the club with 41 goals and 19 assists in 163 matches and 10 trophies in the bag.

Leo Messi and Bojan Krkic are distant relatives: explained through family tree

 for several years but the two players are linked together with something more than just a Camp Nou past.

In fact, Leo and Bojan are distant relatives, 4th cousins to be precise.

Here's their family tree in a short version and an expanded Spanish version which we'll explain to you below:

So, everything started with Mariano Perez Miralles and Teresa Llobera Minguet - they got married in 1846 in Catalonia. They had some children together, including 

. These two are the ancestors of Leo's and Bojan's lines.

's history is less known: he was born in Catalonia and had a son named Jaume Perez who also had a son named Salvador Perez, Bojan's maternal grandfather.

Salvador Perez has a daughter Maria Lluisa Perez - Bojan's mother - who married Serbian 

 - the former Barca player's father whose names are identical.

To put it shortly: Leo's great-great-grandfather and Bojan's great-great-grandfather were brothers.

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thanks for this you have said what I always say

Nkongho Emmanuel Tabi

sometimes too much comparisons to an upcoming young players are not good for their careers.  bojan was exceptional and have the world at his feet then  but once they start comparing him with Messi....boom his career started declining... I remember when they gave Fati the No 10 Jersey I said it was too big to for him, yes Fati is a great player but that No 10 is too big for him and I'm sure that number and the expectations from the fans are also affecting his career because it comes with so much pressure and dedication.. Well I wish he get back to his best and if eventually 🐐 M10 comes back Ansu should be given a different Number to ease the pressure on him....

Run Tinzz

41 goals and 19 assists is not that bad. All the best in his retirement.

Player		G
Artem Dovbyk	Girona	18
Jude Bellingham	Real Madrid	17
Ante Budimir	Osasuna	16
Borja Borja Mayoral	Getafe	15
Alexander Sørloth	Villarreal	15

Gerard Pique reveals Bojan Krkic will retire from football aged 32

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