Cambiasso on his way out of Leicester
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| Getty Images |
Veteran former Argentinian international midfielder Esteban Cambiasso announced on Tuesday he will not seek a new contract with Leicester City ahead of the upcoming English Premier League season.
The 34-year-old helped Leicester avoid relegation from the lucrative top flight of English football last term but his current contract expired last month. New Foxes manager Claudio Ranieri said Monday he needed to know, and quickly, what Cambiasso's intentions were and on Tuesday he had an answer.
"I would like to announce that I have decided not to renew my contract with Leicester City," said Cambiasso on his Facebook page. "I have taken this decision only 24 hours after receiving the proposal from Leicester because I want to give the club as much time as possible to find an alternative."
Ranieri, in his first press conference since being appointed by Leicester on a three-year deal last week after the club sacked manager Nigel Pearson, said Monday he wanted Cambiasso to stay with the Foxes.
"I've had a conversation with him. I have spoken to him, I know him from Inter Milan, I coached him there. I said to him 'I need you, everybody loves you in Leicester, please come back'," said Ranieri.
"He told me he wants to wait and look at all the opportunities offered to him and then he will choose. But we need 'Yes or No' because at the start of the season he is a team leader and if he doesn't come I need another team leader. We don't start the season without a player like him."
Cambiasso - capped 52 times and a member of the Inter Milan side that swept the treble in 2010 taking the Serie A crown, the Italian Cup and the UEFA Champions League - said he would always treasure his time at the Midlands club.
"I would like to thank all the fans who last season made me feel proud to be part of a club with an unforgettable spirit and energy," Cambiasso said. "And a very special thanks to all my team-mates, staff and every people of the club, with whom I have lived one of the most important years of my career, crowned with the remaining EPL status. Many thanks to everyone, keeping you all forever in my heart. Leicester City Football Club."
Leicester thanked Cambiasso by saying: "Leicester City Football Club would like to express its sincerest thanks to Esteban for his exceptional contribution during the 2014/15 season, which saw the Argentine midfielder play a central role in the club's successful fight to remain in the Barclays Premier League.
"Our efforts to retain his services began before the end of last season and the club appreciates the professional manner in which Esteban and his representatives have conducted themselves during negotiations since that time. We fully respect Esteban's wishes and wish him well in his future career."