Former Juventus and AC Milan midfielder Andrea Pirlo has explained why he hung up the boots this year.

Pirlo chose to retire after two years with New York City FC.

“I didn't want to get to that point where people look at each other in the stands if you overhit a pass or miss a shot and think: 'Pirlo's old, he's finished, he can't do it anymore'," Pirlo told Vanity Fair.

“I couldn't have endured that.

“If I hadn't been a footballer? I didn't have a Plan B. I started playing with my brother, with a sponge ball. I always thought that playing football was my destiny.

“As for the future, I have a lot of time to think about it, we'll see, but there's no hurry. For now, I'm enjoying time with my children. I like traveling, I'm not at all a creature of habit.

“Coaching? I have to get my licence first, but it could be an idea."