Javier Mascherano announced his retirement

Mascherano, 36-year-old, uncovered his choice on Sunday, hanging up his boots after 17 years of professional football.

With 147 caps for

Argentina

's national football team which is the most played games in the country's history, Mascherano returned to his birthplace and signed a contract with Estudiantes de La Plata last January. 

After 11 appearances in all rivalries for the Argentinian side, including Sunday's 1-0 defeat to Argentinos Juniors, Mascherano said the time had come for his retirement.

"I want to announce that today I am retiring from football professionally," he said. 

"I want to thank this club that gave me the opportunity to finish my career in Argentina." 

Mascherano added: "I have lived my profession 100 percent, I gave the maximum I could. 

"Today, I find that for some time it's hard for me and I don't want to disrespect Estudiantes, who trusted me to return to Argentina, or my colleagues, or this profession."

In the wake of starting his profession with

River Plate

, Mascherano played for Corinthians and West Ham prior to joining

in 2007. 

A daring defensive midfielder who transformed into center-back at

, Mascherano appreciated the majority of his prosperity at Camp Nou, winning five

LaLiga

titles and the

Champions League

twice among various prizes in the wake of joining Barca in 2010. 

He helped Argentina arrive at the

2014 World Cup

final, which they lost to Germany in the last minutes while getting done with four

Copa America

second-place awards and two

Olympic

golds. 

Following two years with Hebei China Fortune, Mascherano made a beeline for Argentina with Estudiantes, where he completed his vocation.