"It's a decision I took a while ago and has nothing to do with what happened in the Copa America final" which saw the 34-year-old put through his own net in Sunday's 3-0 loss to arch-rivals Brazil.

Instead of donning the albiceleste shirt of the two-times world champions former Valencia star Ayala will concentrate on extending his club career with Zaragoza.

"I just think cycles come to an end and mine has with the national side," said Ayala, who scored seven times for his country, including in the World Cup quarterfinal thriller with Germany.

He later missed a penalty as Argentina went out on spotkicks.

During last season Ayala was all set to join Villarreal after agreeing terms but has now bought out his contract to join Zaragoza, who qualified for the UEFA Cup.