5 famous players who came out of international retirement

#5 Lilian Thuram

France was led by Lilian Thuram at Euro 2008

The tall defender is the most capped player in the history of France national team. Thuram is known for his heroics in the 1998 World Cup semi-final against Croatia. He scored two goals that helped France come back to win 2-1 and hence advance to the final. He was awarded with the Bronze Ball, an honour for the third most valuable player in the tournament.

Following a disappointing Euro 2004 campaign, Thuram retired from international football in 2004, before being called up by Raymond Domenech in 2005.

In the 2006 World Cup, he led the formidable French defence alongside William Gallas. He was named the Man of the Match in France’s semi-final victory over Portugal, the same honour he had received at the semi-finals of 1998 World Cup.

He was named as the caption of the national team for Euro 2008. However, it was a tournament to forget for the stalwart defender as his team failed to qualify for the knockout stages. He announced his retirement alongside Claude Makelele after Euro 2008.