Following the end of a testimonial match that was watched by 50,000 fans at his boyhood club, former Arsenal star Lukas Podolski said a tearful goodbye to his 21-year playing career.
The 39-year-old enjoyed a trophy-laden two decades playing for a variety of elite teams, including Premier League titans. Ten years ago, he helped Germany win the Bundesliga, FA Cup, and the 2014 World Cup.
On Thursday evening, Lukas Podolski made his emotional return to Cologne, where he had joined the club’s youth ranks in 2003 and made 81 appearances before making his first major move to Bayern Munich.
The forward took the microphone after scoring for both Team Poldi and a Cologne XI on the farewell evening and gave a speech in which he pledged his lifelong loyalty to the team.
According to Podolski,
‘It’s over on the pitch now, but we’ll definitely see each other again off the pitch – whether in the stands or on the road’
On Thursday night, Lukas Podolski gave a tearful goodbye to Cologne fans in Germany.
He told the 50,000 people in attendance,
‘It really touches me that so many fans would like to come to enjoy this special evening with me,’ he told the 50,000-strong crowd. ‘It is an honour for me to wear the Billygoat on my chest once more in front of a full house’.
‘It’s a final declaration of love for this special city, the club with its fantastic fans, my team-mates for so many years and other people who have accompanied my path.’
In addition, well-known soccer stars, such as former Germany No. 1 goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, Mats Hummels, Per Mertesacker, Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick, and Joachim Low, the former manager of the national team, appeared in the testimonial.
Before joining Arsenal in 2012, Podolski returned to Cologne after spending two years with Bayern Munich in Bavaria.
After a loan move to Inter Milan, the Polish-born forward played for Antalyaspor, Galatasaray, and Vissel Kobe before retiring from football at Gornik Zabrze.
The German international who won the World Cup in 2014 is the third most-capped player in German history. Podolski retired from playing for the national team in 2017 and is still the third most-capped player in German history.
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