Belgium midfielder Marouane Fellaini announces retirement from international football

Paris: Former Manchester United midfielder Marouane Fellaini retired from international duty with Belgium on Thursday, just over a month after swapping Old Trafford for China. [caption id=“attachment_6221001” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of Marouane Fellaini. AFP[/caption] “After twelve years of representing Belgium at the highest level, I have decided to retire from senior international football,” Fellaini said on his Twitter account. “It has not been an easy decision for me and not one I take lightly. “However, I feel that the time is right for me to step down and allow the next generation of Belgian players to continue this very successful period in Belgian football history.” Fellaini, 31, made 87 appearances for Belgium and was part of the squad that finished third at last year’s World Cup. Belgium are currently top of the FIFA world rankings ahead of France, the team that defeated them in the semi-finals in Russia. Fellaini left United in February after five-and-a-half years at the club to join Chinese Super League team Shandong Luneng. He spent six seasons with Everton before following David Moyes to Manchester following the Scot’s appointment as the successor to Alex Ferguson.