FORMER Chelsea star Arjen Robben has swapped the right wing for a racket… by becoming a PADEL professional.
The Netherlands legend won two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups with the Blues.
Football legend Arjen Robben has crossed over to padel
Robben won a lot of silverware with ChelseaDarren Walsh/Chelsea FC Via Getty Images
Robben also shone bright at Real MadridREUTERS/Juan Medina
Robben dominated during his stint at Bayern MunichAlex Grimm/Bongarts/Getty Images
Real Madrid paid £24million for him in 2007, and he went on to spend a decade with Bayern Munich.
Robben hung up his boots after a spell with Dutch side Groningen in 2021, and devoted himself playing padel.
A fan of the racket sport since his Bayern days, he had a court built in his home’s garden in his eagerness to hone his skills.
Robben has since gained a professional licence to play the tennis-like game, which is huge in mainland Europe and south America.
And the 41-year-old stunned padel experts by qualifying for his first major finals at the weekend.
Robben and partner Werner Lootsma overcame six match points in a qualifier to win a place at the CUPRA FIP Tour tournament in the Netherlands.
He drew a huge crowd to the event, but the pair lost 6-1, 6-0 to Dutch stars Sten Richters and Thijs Roper.
Robben said: “Zlatan Ibrahimovic made padel an important sport in Sweden, and I think I can do the same in the Netherlands.
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“I used to play three times a week when I was in Germany.
“I don’t think I can take myself too seriously. I started with low expectations.
“But I tried to fight on the court, and score as many points as possible.”
Opponents Richters and Roper said: “Arjen is the best former professional footballer we know who plays padel.”
A £12m buy from PSV Eindhoven in 2004, Robben made 106 Chelsea appearances and scored 19 goals.
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