Mario Manduzkic has confirmed his retirement from the Croatia national team with a letter posted via his Twitter account.
The Juventus striker is second only to Davor Suker in his country's all-time leading goal scorers list with 33 from 89 appearances. This summer, his three goals -- scored in the round of 16, semifinals and final -- helped Croatia reach their first-ever World Cup final, where they were beaten 4-2 by France in Russia.
"Dear fans," he wrote. "I always preferred to do my talking on the pitch than off it. That is why these words are harder than slide-tackling an opponent or sprinting in the 120th minute.