Former Crystal Palace defender Mamadou Sakho has confirmed his retirement from professional football at the age of 35.
Affectionately known as ‘The Soldier’, Sakho arrived at Palace on loan from Liverpool in January 2017, picking up the club’s Player of the Month award in March and playing a key role in ensuring survival with a number of vital clean sheets.
He later completed a permanent move in August 2017 and went on to make 75 appearances for the Eagles across four-and-a-half seasons, before moving on to Ligue 1 outfit Montpellier Hérault SC.
Before his time in South London, the Paris-born centre-back captained his boyhood club Paris Saint-Germain to a Ligue 1 title, prior to sealing a switch to Anfield in 2013. During his first campaign there, playing alongside Victor Moses, he came agonisingly close to collecting a Premier League winner’s medal.
Celebrated for his commanding defensive style – as well as his surging runs out from the back – Sakho also earned 29 caps for France and represented his country at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Sakho revealed his decision to hang up his boots on the pitch at Parc des Princes, ahead of PSG’s shock French Cup defeat to Paris FC on Tuesday night.
Everyone at Crystal Palace wishes Mamadou every success in the next chapter of his journey.