Man Utd defender Evans announces Northern Ireland retirement

Northern Ireland captain Jonny Evans has announced his immediate retirement from international football.

Evans, 36, made his international debut in September 2006 against Spain and went on to make 107 appearances.

This is a record bettered only by Steve Davis, Pat Jennings and Aaron Hughes for Northern Ireland.

The Manchester United defender said: “Putting on the green shirt 107 times and representing the people of Northern Ireland has been my biggest honour.”

Thank you, Jonny Evans @6jevans pic.twitter.com/TmWO1e5OjD

— Northern Ireland (@NorthernIreland) August 28, 2024

Evans featured for Northern Ireland in all four of their matches at Euro 2016, their first major tournament in 30 years.

He said: “Without doubt the highlight of my international career has been the Euros in France 2016, reaching a major tournament and representing our wee country was a dream come true.”

Evans’ retirement comes seven months after record cap holder Davis called time on his professional career, with manager Michael O’Neill set to name his squad for next month’s Nations League games against Luxembourg and Bulgaria on Thursday.