Arjen Robben retires from football

Bayern Munich and Netherlands great Arjen Robben has decided to end his playing career at the age of 35.

The winger enjoyed a glittering 19-year career, representing some of Europe's top clubs such as PSV Eindhoven, Chelsea and Real Madrid before joining Bayern Munich in 2009.

He would then spend 10 years at the Bavarian side, winning eight Bundesliga titles and scoring 144 goals - including the winner in the 2012/13 Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund.

Robben played 96 times for his country, too, scoring 37 goals and finishing as a runner-up at the 2010 World Cup.

 

July 4, 2019

In a press release to the Dutch media, the former winger said: "I have been thinking a lot over the past few weeks. As everyone knows, I took the time to make an informed decision about my future after my last Bayern Munich match. And I decided to put an end to my career as a professional football player".

"It is without doubt the hardest decision I have had to make in my career. A decision where heart and mind collided", he added.

The 35 year-old then suggested that the toll professional football takes on his body could be responsible for his decision: "The love for the game and the conviction that you can still handle the whole world, as opposed to the reality that not everything runs the way you want and you are no longer the 16-year-old boy who had no idea what an injury meant.

"At the moment I am fit and healthy and as a fan of many other sports I would like to keep it that way for the future. I will therefore stop definitively, but it is good that way", he finished by saying.