Ryan Giggs has announced his retirement from international football with Wales.
The Wales skipper will end a 16-year career with his country by playing his 64th international on Saturday against the Czech Republic in the Euro 2008 qualifier at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.
It is believed that Giggs made a personal decision to quit in the wake of Wales' poor display in Dublin in March when a 1-0 defeat all but ended their chances of qualifying for next summer's finals in Austria and Switzerland.
Wales officials were made aware of Giggs' feelings last week when they assembled for the friendly against New Zealand in Wrexham which finished in a 2-2 draw.
It is a shattering blow for Wales, Giggs being arguably their greatest-ever player - certainly of the modern era - and it will hit boss John Toshack's plans hard.
He has always said that he is primarily aiming for a serious qualification bid for the next World Cup in South Africa, when Giggs - now 33 - will be approaching 36.
But Toshack would have wanted Giggs around for his immense experience and the quality of his leadership.
However, an FA of Wales source said: ‘Maybe Ryan has come to accept that the chances of qualification for Euro 2008 are all but gone.
‘It is a great shame, he has been an outstanding servant to Welsh football and since being made captain under Tosh, he has been a major influence on the young players.’
But for Giggs, like so many other top Welsh players in the past, he will now accept that he will never play in a major finals.
The last time Wales took part in such an event was the Sweden World Cup of 1958.
Since then world-class players like Ian Rush, Neville Southall, Mark Hughes, Dean Saunders, Kevin Ratcliffe and even Toshack himself, have been forced to accept the limitations that Wales play under.
Giggs made his Wales debut against West Germany in October 1991 at 17 years and 321 days old. At the time he was the youngest-ever Wales international.
His Wales career was blighted by regular withdrawals in his younger days when a succession of managers were unable to persuade Sir Alex Ferguson to make him available.
It was not until Toshack's reign, which started three years ago, that Giggs even played in an away friendly for his country.
But when former boss Hughes quit to manage Blackburn soon after the heartbreak of losing a play-off to reach the last European Championships, Giggs was one of the few senior players who opted to stay on.
Many, including skipper Gary Speed, quit the new Wales set-up amid much animosity.
But Giggs accepted the captain's armband and has aided Toshack's attempts to bring in a succession of new, young players.
But after winning his ninth Premiership title - an individual record - it is this succession of new young faces that may have affected Giggs' thinking.
He can see that Wales will not qualify from this current group, and by the time South Africa comes around he could well consider himself too old.
He has been nursed through many seasons to overcome his hamstring injuries and his decision to quit internationals will help to prolong his Manchester United career.
