Lovren retires from Croatia national team

Former Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren on Thursday said he was ending his long career at the Croatian national team.

In the career with which he reached the final stages of the World Cup twice, 33-year-old Lovren won 78 caps since his debut in 2009.

He reached the final of the 2018 World Cup in Russia and came third last year in Qatar.

“The time has come for me to say my final goodbye to the Croatian national team, though I will forever remain a huge supporter and will follow the team in each coming match,” he said in a statement on his Twitter account and the national federation website.

“The most beautiful chapters of my national team story were the ones that we wrote during the past five years. This is, if I’m being honest, still a complete dream to me.

“So many emotions went through me, especially in 2018 and 2022, and I find it difficult to put these experiences into words.

“I lived my life in hope that I will get to experience moments like those and, when they did come, I lived them with immense pride. These memories will remain in my heart forever.”

Lovren is still active in club football in a second term at French club Olympique Lyon.

He was at Liverpool from 2014 to 2020, winning the 2018/2019 UEFA Champions League and the 2019/2020 English Premier League with them.