Ex-Man Utd star Diego Forlan set to make professional tennis debut aged 45
Former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan is set to make his professional tennis debut aged 45 at next month’s Uruguay Open.
Forlan, who also enjoyed spells at Villareal and Atletico Madrid before retiring from football in 2019, will partner Argentine Federico Coria in the doubles event in Montevideo.
Forlan was granted a wildcard into the event which sits on the Challenger Tour, the second-tier of tennis competitions below the ATP Tour.
The Uruguayan is well-known for his love of tennis and was an accomplished junior player before choosing to pursue a footballing career instead.
Since his retirement, the 45-year-old has been competing on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Masters Tour and is ranked just outside the top 100 for players aged 45 and over.
His most recent competition came in August at a MT400 level event in Paraguay, with Forlan reaching the final before suffering a straight-set defeat to Argentina’s Federico Pontarolo.
In an interview with the Athletic earlier this year, Forlan said he practices four times a week and was drawn back to the sport due to his desire to keep fit and active.
‘I need something where I can run,’ he said. ‘Golf, you play in beautiful places — I like it and I still do it, but I need something different, something more similar to football.
‘I started training and playing tennis and I was getting better and better. At first, I would play the top players at the club and players from around Uruguay and it was easy for them to beat me.
‘Then it became more difficult. Now I can win. At the club tournaments, I was losing in the first round, now I’m winning a lot of them.’
Forlan’s partner Coria is the world number 101 in singles and has won seven tournament wins on the Challenger Tour.
The former striker joined United in 2002 from Independiente, scoring 17 goals in 98 appearances for the club before joining Spanish side Villareal.
He twice won the Pichichi Trophy, in 2005 and 2009, for most goals in a La Liga season, and also claimed the Golden Ball at the 2010 World Cup for his staring role as Uruguay finished third.