5 players who shockingly announced their early retirement from international football

2) Ferenc Puskas

The Hungarian legend’s career was all but over in 1956

During the 1950s, Hungary was regarded to be one of the greatest teams in world football and Ferenc Puskas was the captain of this great team called The Mighty Magyars for 32 successive games. He led the Hungarian team to the gold medal at the 1952 Olympics at Helsinki where he scored four goals.

However, Puskas’ finest hour with the national team came two years later when he led Hungary to the final of the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland. Puskas suffered a hairline fracture in the ankle which sidelined him for both the quarter-final and semi-final. However, he played in the final against West Germany at Bern and scored the team’s opening goal after only six minutes.

West Germany won the match 3-2 but Puskas was named as the Best Player of the Tournament. Due to the Hungarian Revolution in 1956, Puskas retired from the national team with 84 goals in 85 appearances for the national team.

He was only 29. He later immigrated to Spain where he was the nucleus of a Rea Madrid side which was regarded as one of the best in European Football. He even represented the Spanish national team at the 1962 World Cup but his international career was well over in 1956.