Former Liverpool and France striker Djibril Cisse announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 35, yesterday.

Cisse, capped 41 times by his country, had originally called time on his playing career in October 2015 due to a debilitating hip injury but hoped to resurrect his career after having an operation on the problem last year.

He trained with his first club Auxerre in a bid to get fit and earn a contract at a team in his native France but, after failing to attract any suitors, decided to call it quits on his 17-year career.

“I have loved being a footballer. Up until now, the ball was my whole life. I would have liked to have continued my career, which was interrupted in spite of me, but I have to admit today that football is finished,” Cisse told Yahoo Sport.

“I’m going to give my body and soul to my career as a DJ, a producer, and as a pundit, as well as develop my line of clothing.”