Guivarc'h forced to retire

Saturday, April 27, 2002
Guivarc'h forced to retire

PARIS (Reuters) - Former French international striker Stephane Guivarc'h has retired because of a lingering knee injury.
'I officially put an end to my career. It was high time for me to stop. It had become too hard for too long,' said Guivarc'h, who was part of France's 1998 World Cup-winning side.

Guivarc'h, who started his professional career with Brest in 1989, had been sidelined for months by the injury that prevented him playing for French first division team En Avant Guingamp.

'My knee cartilage has suffered a lot and I haven't touched a ball for four months,' he added on his website.

'Even with time, I won't make it. So it is better to stop,' he added.

Guivarc'h, who won 14 caps for France, played for Brest, Guingamp and AJ Auxerre before trying his luck unsuccessfully in across the Channel in Britain with Scottish premier league club Rangers and English premier league side Newcastle United.

He had returned to Guingamp from Auxerre this season

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