Czech Republic captain Darida retires from national team

PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) — A day after the Czech Republic was eliminated from the European Championship, team captain Vladimír Darida retired from international soccer.

The 30-year-old Hertha Berlin playmaker missed the 2-0 victory over the Netherlands in the round of 16 with an unspecified injury and came on as a substitute in the 2-1 loss to Denmark in the Euro 2020 quarterfinals on Saturday.

Since his debut in a warmup match for Euro 2012 against Israel, Darida played 76 games for the national team, scoring eight goals.

“I experienced beautiful moments in the national team,” Darida said in a statement on Sunday. “Now, I’d like to spend much more time with my family and my young son.”

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