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Zola brings down curtain on career

Zola was so popular in England that he was awarded an honorary OBE (Order of the British Empire).

MILAN, Italy -- Italian forward Gianfranco Zola announced his retirement on Wednesday bringing to an end a 21-year glittering career that graced the English premier league and Serie A.

"I think this is the right thing to do," local news agencies quoted 38-year-old Zola as saying on Wednesday.

Zola played for Napoli, Parma, Chelsea and then returned home to his latest club Cagliari for a glorious swansong as they won promotion back to Serie A.

"Some time has passed since the end of the (Serie A) championship but I needed to reflect a bit.

"It was not an easy decision to make, but I felt the need to care of the things I have neglected," he added.

Zola, whose diminutive frame contained abundant trickery, humor and guile, made his name at Napoli as understudy to Diego Maradona and then won the UEFA Cup with Parma in 1995.

He joined English premier league side Chelsea in 1996 to begin a seven-year stint in which fans came to adore him and opposition defences grew to fear him.

Unlike many players whose skill and stamina fade with age, Zola arguably found his best form at the London club, scoring 80 goals and helping the current English champions to six trophies, including the European Cup Winners' Cup, but not the league title.

Chelsea's fans voted him their best ever player in 2003 before he left to join Cagliari in his native Sardinia, helping them to promotion to the top flight.

Last year, he was awarded an OBE for services to British football in a special ceremony in Rome.

He won 35 international caps.

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