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Santonio Quaranta Retires From Major League Soccer After 11 Seasons

D.C. United mainstay Santonio Quaranta has elected to retire at the age of 27 after the club elected not to pick up his contract option.

By Mike Prada
Getty Images

Former D.C. United midfielder Santonio Quaranta, a mainstay with the club for 10 years, has decided to retire from Major League Soccer at the age of 27 after D.C. United elected not to pick up his contract option for next season. Quaranta delivered the news to Steven Goff of the Washington Post:

"As a soccer player, you’re expected to push it until you’re 33, 34 years old," Quaranta told the Insider on Sunday. "That’s not me. This is it. My gut and heart were telling me, and I’m at peace with it."

Quaranta missed most of the 2011 season with a concussion, and with a crowded midfield, D.C. United elected to make him a free agent after the season. Quaranta said he's received offers from several MLS teams, but decided it was time to retire anyway. He said he plans on spending most of his time working on a Baltimore youth soccer program that he's been involved with during his D.C. United tenure.

For more on D.C. United, visit Black and Red United.