RVP nearly made an unexpected comeback
All in all, Robin van Persie was probably pretty content when he called time on his playing career in 2019.
A career which started and ended at Feyenoord had seen him win trophies with Arsenal and Manchester United, enjoy a stint in Turkey with Fenerbahce and collect over 100 caps for the Dutch national side along the way. Not bad going.
Though it’s been over a year since his final professional game, Van Persie has revealed how he might have reversed his retirement decision almost straight away.
The Dutchman was invited to play in Vincent Kompany’s Manchester City testimonial in September of last year, where he played alongside former United teammates Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs in a Premier League All Stars XI.
Having scored in the game, the Dutchman admitted it was almost enough to prompt a rethink.
“A few months after my farewell at Feyenoord, I played Vincent Kompany’s farewell game in Manchester,” Van Persie told De Telegraaf.
“I played with Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick, and it went really well. Everything on the right foot, those guys just get it. I took part in the entire match and scored a nice goal. ”
In fact, his performance had gone so well, he received a call from Kompany the next morning. The Belgian international had left City to take up a position as player-manager at Anderlecht, and wanted to know if Van Persie would be interested in a move to the club.
After a discussion with his wife, Van Persie decided against it – though did give it serious thought.
“I discussed it at home with my wife and she thought I shouldn’t anymore. But of course she left me free to choose. The day after, so the second day after the game, it didn’t feel so good in my body when I woke up. Then I decided not to do it. ”
