A host of Chelsea icons have sent fitting tributes to midfielder John Obi Mikel after the Nigerian announced his retirement from football at the age of 35.
The Nigerian has called an end to his 18-year career which started all the way back in 2004 with Nigerian side Plateau United. Chelsea poached the midfielder from Norway in 2006 and despite his non-legends tag that Blues fans have given to the likes of Didier Drogba, Petr Cech and many others, the defensive-minded player still played his part in many successes on the pitch for the club.
Whether it was his involvement in the run to the 2012 UEFA Champions League title or his iconic goal in Paris, Mikel despite not going down as a legend, will be remembered for being a cult hero of such.
The 35-year-old, who racked up an impressive 372 appearances in SW6, confirmed the news with his Instagram post which read: 'There is a saying that “all good things must come to an end”, and for my professional football career, that day is today.
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' I look back at the past 20 years of my career, and I must say that I am very satisfied with all that I was able to achieve and more importantly the human it has helped shape.
'All of this would not have been possible without the unwavering support of my family, managers, clubs, coaches, teammates and most importantly my ever-loyal fans. You supported me through my highs and lows, even on days that I did not live up to your expectations. I say a big thank you.
'I will also like to encourage everyone who I may have inspired one way or the other in the course of my career to never give up on their dreams, for every time you think about quitting, remind yourself why you started.
'This is not goodbye, it’s the start of another journey, another chapter of my life. I look forward to what the future holds and I hope you will walk with me. Thank you.'
After his playing days in West London were over, Mikel had playing stints with the likes of AFC Bournemouth, Stoke City and most recently Kuwait SC. No wonder his post went down well with so many icons in the game including Chelsea legend Terry. With this in mind, football.london rounds up some of the reactions from his good friends.
@filipeluis commented: 'Congrats on your AMAZING career my friend. It was an honour to play with you [followed by red heart emoji.]'
@johnterry.26 said: [Blue heart emoji] 'What a great career my friend, it was a pleasure to play and share the dressing room with you. Love you Georgie Boy [followed by another blue heart emoji and a football one too].'
@garyjcahill followed on: 'Congratulations on an amazing career mate, pleasure to play alongside you. Enjoy your retirement [followed by three emojis].'
@salomonKalou replied: 'OGaaaaaaaaaaaa. I dey miss u Baba Thank u for that wonderful journey.'
It wasn't just loving from his former Blues allies that were present under this message, it was clear that Mikel's services were also very well appreciated in Staffordshire.
@dannybatth put: 'Class [followed by clapping emoji].'
@adenflint4 added: 'Absolute pleasure to share the pitch with you John boyyyyyy maaaate.'
Former Stoke midfielder @etebo_karo concluded: 'Goodluck skippa.'
Chelsea fans - what is your best memory of John Obi Mikel? Leave them down in the comments section below!
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