'Heart of Seville'Jesus Navas (39) with 'Blue Eyes' left the friendly ground with tears.
Navas played his last active match in the 19th round of the Spanish Primera Liga against Real Madrid in the 2024-2025 season at Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, Spain on the 23rd (Korea time).
Before the match, Real and Sevilla players lined up in two lines to give Navas 'Guard of Honor'. Real midfielder Luka Modric created a warm atmosphere by giving a real uniform with all the signatures of the real players.
In the 20th minute of the second half, when his team was dragged 1-4, Navas was replaced by midfielder Stanis Idumbo and went on the ground for about 25 minutes. There was an amazing sight at the stadium. Both Seville away fans and Real home fans gave a standing ovation to Navas, who is retiring after the day. Tears flowed in Navas' eyes after the game.
Navas finished the game with a 2-4 loss and "Today was truly spectacular. I've never seen anything like this in a rival team stadium. It's really crazy," he said.
Tears welled up in Navas' eyes when he calmly said how he felt about playing the retirement game in the joint coverage area, and eventually he dropped his head and began to cry. According to the Spanish daily 'Marca', she shed tears for a long minute. Navas said "I couldn't see anything at the last minute. Every moment I lived, I just looked at the ground thinking of the joy I delivered to Seville and the Spanish national team," he said tearfully. "It's really unique to make people happy."
Navas said "There were many moments, many joys. I achieved a lot, but people always said I was the same. Those things were the driving force behind coming here, and it was the value I wanted to convey to the national team."
Navas was born in 1985 in Los Palacios, Seville, and made his debut in the Seville first team in 2003 after playing for the Seville youth team. Navas, a fast-paced and dedicated classic light winger, was favored by all coaches who played for his team and Spain's national team. In the 2009-2010 season, he beat Barcelona's Andrés Iniesta and was selected as the best attacking midfielder in La Liga.
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| Sergio Ramos (left) and Navas, who walked different paths. Ramos moved to Real Madrid and became a legend of Santiago Bernabeu. Source = Jesus Navas Instagram |
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| Sportschosun DB |
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| EPAYonhap News |
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Navas, who left for Manchester City for four years after paying 20 million euros (29 billion won in current exchange rate) to Sevilla, which faced a financial crisis in 2013, returned to Seville in 2017 and built a `romantic career.' He led the European Europa League to two championships in 2020 and 2023, presenting unforgettable memories to fans.
The 2006 and 2007 Europa League, the 2006 European Super Cup, the 2007 and 2010 Copadelay wins, and the 2007 Spanish Super Cup have won eight championships. He played 705 games in Seville alone, setting a record for the most appearances by a club. He is 290 games behind Pablo Blanco (415 games) who came in second.
He successfully transformed into a full-back in the last years and supported Spain's first Euro championship in 12 years with a performance that tied France's Kylian Mbappe in the Euro 2024 semi-final. Navas contributed to winning major tournaments as a member of the Invincible Fleet, including the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Euro 2012 and Euro 2024, and the European Nations League in the 2022-2023 season. The A-match record is 56 games (5 goals).
Navas, who has suffered from hip injuries for the past year or two, announced in September that he would retire after 2024. Navas, who had a home farewell match against Celta Vigo last time, said a complete goodbye on the day.
yoonjinman@sportschosun.com
