Morientes calls it a day

Former Spain and Liverpool striker Fernando Morientes has announced his retirement from football.

Spaniard retires to spend more time with his family

Former Spain and Liverpool striker Fernando Morientes has announced his retirement from football. The 34-year-old, who spent last season at French champions Marseille, has decided to quit because he wants to have more free time with his family. Morientes will now move into a job in Spanish television, where he will commentate on Europa League matches and Euro 2012 qualifiers. He told radio station Cope in an interview reported in Tuesday's edition of Spanish newspaper Marca: "After 17 years of top-level football... I want to spend more time with my family." Morientes became a star at Real Madrid, where he won three UEFA Champions League titles (1998, 2000 and 2002) and two La Liga titles (2001 and 2003). He joined Liverpool in 2005, but his time at Anfield proved to be disappointing and a 2006 move to Valencia followed before he switched to Marseille. Morientes also scored 27 goals in 47 games for Spain between 1998 and 2007.