Former Manchester United star to make professional tennis debut at the age of 45 | OneFootball

Uruguay legend Diego Forlan might have hung up his boots, but not his tennis shoes. The 45-year-old will be making a shock return to professional sport next month.

As per Diario AS, the former Manchester United, Atletico Madrid and Villarreal forward will take place in the challenger event as part of a doubles pair with Fede Corea in Uruguay next month. The 45-year-old is a fan of the sport, and having had a go at management at Penarol and Atenas, will now make the switch to a professional tournament.

“My father played football and after retiring at 41 he started playing tennis. That’s why I started when I was two years old. Then you already know that I dedicated myself to football before dedicating myself to this sport, as often as I do now,” he said after an event in Lima, Peru.

Forlan is ranked 112 in the world by the International Tennis Federation in the over-45 category, and won the doubles in Lima at a challenger event. He also reached the final in a singles match in Asuncion in Paraguay earlier this year. He has acted as an ambassador for La Liga in the past too, and outside of Artem Dovbyk, is the last player to have won the Pichichi award that did not play for Real Madrid or Barcelona.