PRAGUE (AP) — Former captain Vladimír Darida has agreed to come out of international retirement to help the Czech Republic try and qualify for the World Cup.

The 35-year-old Darida retired from internationals in 2021 after the Czechs were eliminated in the quarterfinals of the European Championship.

The playmaker agreed to rejoin the team after he was approached by coach Miroslav Koubek and Czech Football Association general manager Pavel Nedvěd.

Darida said on Tuesday his decision was not about his personal ambitions but about “doing together the maximum to return Czech football to the World Cup.”

The Czechs last appeared in the World Cup in 2006.

Darida debuted for the national team in 2012 and played 76 games, scoring eight times. After previously playing in Bundesliga sides Freiburg and Hertha Berlin and Greece’s Aris Thessaloniki, Darida returned home last summer and captains Hradec Králové in the Czech league.

The Czechs are in the World Cup playoffs after finishing runner-up in their qualifying group behind Croatia. They meet Ireland in a single elimination game on March 26 at home. The winner then will host Denmark or North Macedonia for a spot at the tournament co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The team that makes the tournament will join Mexico, South Africa and South Korea in Group A.

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