ARJEN ROBBEN burst into TEARS after making his first start for boyhood club Groningen since September.
The former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich star, 37, returned to his old Dutch club last July – a year after retiring from the beautiful game.
However, Robben suffered an injury on his second debut in September.
And he only made his playing return off the bench less than a month ago against Heerenveen.
On Sunday against Emmen, Robben was thrust into the Groningen starting XI by manager Danny Bujis.
And the winger showed that class is permanent by delivering TWO assists in a 4-0 win.
Speaking after the final whistle, Robben was clearly emotional and could not hold back the tears.
He told ESPN: “I have come a long way, this is what I wanted. I want to help this club and I want to play football.
“If I can and succeed, then I am very happy. It has been a long and hard road.
“It was tough and difficult but I kept fighting. The reward has to come sometime.
FREE BETS: GET OVER £2,000 IN SIGN UP OFFERS HERE
“I had fun, like a child, and it was also important to the team today.”
Robben also revealed he would be ready to play for Holland at this summer’s Euros should Frank de Boer give him a shock call-up – three-and-a-half years since retiring from internationals.
Robben added: “[If I’m asked?] Then I’ll come! When I started this summer, the Euros were something of my wildest dreams.
“Firstly I want to stay realistic and see how things go in the coming weeks, then we’ll see further.”
Dutch icon Robben first joined Groningen in 1996 aged 12 and played 52 times in two seasons before joining PSV Eindhoven.
Robben led them to the 2003 Eredivisie title, scoring 21 times in 75 games, before signing up for Roman Abramovich’s Chelsea revolution in 2004.
Robben quickly became a fan favourite at Stamford Bridge and played 106 times in three years, winning two Premier League titles, two League Cups and one FA Cup under Jose Mourinho.
Real Madrid then came calling in 2007, but he managed just 65 games in two years while winning one LaLiga title before signing for Bayern Munich in 2009.
Robben enjoyed his best football with the Germans, scoring 144 goals in 309 games across ten seasons.
Robben led Bayern to eight Bundesliga titles, five German Cups and the 2013 Champions League before retiring in July 2019 – only to announce his comeback with Groningen a year later.
Should Robben also make an international comeback, he would add to his 97 Holland caps after leading his country to second at the 2010 World Cup and third at the 2014 tournament.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
