Fabian Delph retires: When ex-Man City star took on Guardiola in dressing room clip

Fabian Delph has officially announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 32.

Writing on Instagram, the former England international said: “So today I announce my retirement with nothing but happiness and gratitude for what this beautiful game has given me.

“Massive shout-out to my family, friends, players and staff from the amazing clubs I have been fortunate enough to represent as well as the support I have had from the fans.”

The news comes off the back of a tough two seasons at Everton where injuries led to him making just a handful of appearances and ultimately saw him leave the club upon the expiration of his contract this summer.

However, make no mistake that Delph enjoyed an impressive career in the beautiful game, often going underrated despite strutting his stuff for Leeds United and Aston Villa early in his career.

And when that promise was finally rewarded with a move to Manchester City in 2015, you’ve got to say that Delph handled the pressure a lot better than many players who came before him.

You would, after all, have been forgiven for fearing that Delph might have followed in the footsteps of Scott Sinclair and Jack Rodwell as he arrived at the Etihad Stadium in the same summer of much bigger names such as Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling.

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And while his time with City was by no means trouble free, Delph stepped up when it mattered most during the 2017/18 season in which Pep Guardiola won his first ever Premier League title.

Injuries meant that Delph played a much bigger role for the Citizens than he had over the previous two seasons, spending much of the club’s historic ‘Centurion’ season as the first-choice