break, he began to be used more as a substitute, coming on in the last 15 minutes of matches, and he failed to score during the second half of the season as Niort finished as Championnat National runners-up behind Nîmes Olympique, thereby regaining their place in Ligue 2 after four seasons away. In the higher division, Gonzalez was used sparingly by manager Pascal Gastien during the first half of the campaign, making only three starts. He struggled to secure a place in the team thanks to the emergence of new signings such as Greg Houla and the good form of Simon Hébras and in September 2012 he revealed that he would almost certainly retire at the end of the season. On 11 February 2013, Gonzalez announced his immediate retirement from professional football, stating that his interest in playing had waned and that the game had lost its pleasure for him. Honours Auxerre Ligue 1 champions: 1995–96 Chamois Niortais Championnat de France amateur Group C winners: 2009–10 Championnat National runners-up: 2011–12 France Under-19 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship winners: 1996 References General Arnaud Gonzalez profile at chamoisfc79.fr Specific 1977 births Living people Sportspeople from Dijon French footballers Association football forwards AJ Auxerre players AS Beauvais Oise players En Avant Guingamp players Chamois Niortais F.C. players Ligue 1 players Ligue 2 players Footballers from Bourgogne-Franche-Comté