From Whitchurch to the world stage: Gareth Bale's greatest moments in pictures

Cymru captain Gareth Bale has announced his retirement from football at the age of 33. He finishes his career as one of Wales' greatest ever players.

The once most expensive player in the world announced his decision on social media.

Here's a look back at his glittering career in pictures

On 17 April 2006, at the age of 16, Gareth Bale made his professional debut for Southampton against Millwall. Despite playing mainly as a defender, he scored five goals in 45 appearances for the Saints.

In 2006, sixteen-year-old Bale became the youngest ever player to represent Wales.

A year after his debut, the Cardiff-born star completed a transfer to Premier League team Tottenham Hotspur.

In the 2012-13 season, Bale established himself himself as a world-class talent with his performances for Tottenham. He was named the PFA Player Of The Year and PFA Young Player Of The Year and finished his career with a record of 56 goals in 203 games for Tottenham.

In September of 2013, Bale became the world's most expensive player when he was bought by Real Madrid for an estimated fee of £85 million pounds.

While at Madrid, he became one of the most decorated Welsh footballers of all time. Across his 258 appearances in the Spanish capital he scored 106 goals and won five Champions Leagues.

Bale helped end a 58-year wait for a major tournament appearance by qualifying for the Euros in 2016. Inspired by their talisman, Wales produced a sensational run to the semi-finals, only losing to eventual winners Portugal. He scored a memorable free-kick against England in the group stages of the tournament.

Bale produced a moment of magic in the 2018 Champions League Final against Liverpool with an overhead kick. It is considered by many to be one of the greatest goals in the tournament's history.

Bale brought joy to Welsh fans when he scored the goal that took his country to their first World Cup in 64 years against Ukraine on 5 June 2022.

Bale's last ever goal came in Wales' first game of the 2022 World Cup. His penalty meant that he became the first Welshman to score on the biggest stage since John Charles in 1958.