Real Madrid icon Pepe sends message to ex-Manchester United star Nani after latter announces retirement

Real Madrid legend Pepe has sent a heartfelt message to former Manchester United midfielder Nani on the latter's retirement. The former wrote a message in the comments section of a post made by Nani on Instagram as he called it a day from professional football.

Nani captioned the post:

"The time has come to say goodbye, I have decided to finish my career as a professional player. It’s been an amazing ride and I wanted to thank every single person who has helped me and supported me through the highs and lows during a career which lasted over 20 years and gave me so many unforgettable memories. Time to turn a new leaf and focus on new goals and dreams. See you soon! Obrigado. Thank you. Gracias. Grazie. Teşekkürler ❤️⚽️"

“Big Nanaca, I wish you all the best brother in this beautiful new phase of life. Big hug Grande (sic),” Pepe wrote in the comments.

Nani arrived at Manchester United from Sporting CP in 2007 and stayed till 2014, a season after the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson.

Nani made 230 appearances for United, during which he found the back of the net on 41 occasions. He also won the Premier League title on four occasions with them, to go with a Champions League, two League Cups, four Super Cups, and one Club World Cup. He returned to Sporting CP on loan in 2014 before joining Fenerbahce.

Pepe, on the other hand, made 334 appearances for Real Madrid from 2007 to 2017 before moving on to Besiktas and FC Porto on free transfers.

He made 141 appearances for Portugal, in which he scored eight goals. On the other hand, Nani won the Portugal cap on 112 occasions, scoring 23 goals. Pepe and Nani played together for Portugal in 71 matches.

Manchester United keen on improving after loss at home to Nottingham Forest

Manchester United suffered their second loss in four days under new head coach Ruben Amorim when they were beaten 2-3 at home by Nottingham Forest on Saturday, December 7. The Red Devils were thoroughly outplayed by the visitors, and as a result, remained in the 13th spot with just 19 points to their name.

However, Amorim, who arrived recently from Sporting CP, seemed confident of turning things around.

"I had this period at Sporting and if you are a little experienced in football this happens with a lot of clubs. We have to manage to continue to do the same things and improve the team because this will turn around," said Amorim, according to the BBC.

Manchester United next play Viktoria Plzen away from home on Thursday, December 12, in the UEFA Europa League.