Stephan Lichtsteiner has confirmed he will leave Juventus when his contract expires in the summer and says he does not intend to join another Serie A club.
Lichtsteiner, 34, has been part of the side that has won six straight Serie A titles and are a point away from a seventh.
But he told Mediaset the time had come for him to seek a final adventure elsewhere.
“I’m playing in one of the biggest clubs in Europe and there’s always competition for places,” he said after making his 300th appearance in Serie A in Saturday’s 3-1 win over Bologna.
“But my future is going to be away from Turin. At the end of the season, I’m leaving. I’ll play abroad next year, but I’ve not signed anything yet.”
Lichtsteiner scored the first goal at the Juventus Stadium and has made 200 Serie A appearances for the club, and said playing for Juve had changed his mentality.
“I didn’t know anything about all of this pressure and all this desire to win before,” he said.
“I’ve also improved my game, because at Lazio we were defending inside our own 20 yards.”
Mattia De Sciglio’s arrival from AC Milan last summer has reduced Lichtsteiner’s opportunities this season, while Andrea Barzagli has also played on the right side of Juve’s defence.
He was not named in the squad submitted to UEFA for the group stage of the Champions League, but returned for the knockout stage and played in the second leg games against both Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid.
Ben Gladwell reports on Serie A, the Italian national team and the Bundesliga for ESPN FC, UEFA and the Press Association. @UEFAcomBenG.
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