Wolves and Nigeria goalie retires after beating leukemia

Published

WOLVERHAMPTON, England (AP) Wolverhampton goalkeeper Carl Ikeme retired on Friday, a month after revealing he was in complete remission from acute leukemia.

Ikeme spent the past year fighting the disease, and decided to heed medical advice that the toll of recovering was too much on his body before trying to play again.

The last of his more than 200 appearances for Wolves was in March 2017.

''My health's the main thing and I just want to be here for my children and family and friends,'' Ikeme said on the club website. ''It's difficult when you look back at what you've gone through in your football career, but in the grand scheme of things, with your life in danger, it's a minimum price I have to pay.''

The 32-year-old Ikeme joined the club at 14, and while he missed Wolves' promotion to the English Premier League last season, he was involved in previous promotions in 2003 and 2009.

He earned 10 caps for Nigeria, which for the recent World Cup named him as its honorary 24th team member.