Arjen Robben is 37-year-old but if he is fit and invited by the coach of the Netherlands, Frank de Boer, the pacey winger would not hesitate to play in the forthcoming European Championship.
The former Bayern Munich and Chelsea winger who has retired from international football since 2017, said he doesn’t mind playing in the forthcoming Euro 2020 which will kick-off in June.
Recall that Arjen Robben returned from retirement to rejoin his childhood club, FC Groningen in 2020. Immediately he joined the club, the Dutch side decided to start him in the first match of the season against another former club of his, PSV Eindhoven but sustained an injury which forced him out of the game in the 30th minute.
The injury kept Robben out of football for over seven months. He had the chance to play his first competitive match in 2021 on Sunday, May 9, against FC Emmen. In the game, Arjen Robben played 80 minutes of football in which he provided two assists in his club’s 4-0 win.
The win took Groningen to the 7th spot on the Eredivisie table with 49 points in 32 games which means that the club is six points clear of the final place in the four-team playoff that the Eredivisie uses to decide the last team to enter Europe next season.
In an interview with ESPN after the game, Arjen Robben who has appeared in three World Cups and three European Championship for the Dutch national team said he would say yes to a national team call-up.
Robben who scored 37 goals in 96 games before he retired from national team football, said it would be fun for him to play in the forthcoming European Championship, calling the national team a “step-up”.
He said: “Going to Euro 2020 is somewhere in my wildest dreams, but you must be very careful because I can already see tomorrow’s headlines.
“Right now I’m not saying I want to go, but if he [De Boer] should call, I’d say yes.”
On his return to football after seven months of injury, Robben said: “It was just a long way. One hopes for more, one expects more. Then it’s hard and difficult. And I kept fighting. And then there is a game like today and I can take part and have 75 minutes of fun like a child and can still be important for the team with two assists – yes, then I’m happy.”
💚 Wat een passie.. Wat een voetballer.. Wat een middag!
— FC Groningen (@fcgroningen) May 9, 2021
En nu door…#samennaardegrotemarkt pic.twitter.com/eGqQRpnuam
