10 amazing football facts that will blow your mind

#5 Jari Litmanen is the only footballer to play international football in four different decades

Litmanen playing for Finland

Jari Litmanen is arguably the greatest Finnish player to have graced the game of football. Litmanen, or Litti as he is called in Finland, had an illustrious playing career that went on from 1987 to 2011, during which he played for top European clubs like Ajax, Barcelona and Liverpool.

For a man whose career was marred by injuries and therefore never reached its true potential, the Finn did great to play professional football across four different decades; he is among the very few men to have done so. But Litmanen is the only player to have played international football in four different decades.

He made his debut on 22 October 1989 against Trinidad and Tobago and later served as the team captain between 1996 and 2008. On 19 January 2010, he played for Finland against South Korea and set his unique record before retiring from international duties later that year with a goal in his last game.

Litmanen’s record is another one which is unlikely to be broken by anyone, as most players today retire from international football quite early with the objective of prolonging their club careers.