Football news - Robin van Persie announces he will retire at end of season

Van Persie, 35, announced that this season with Feyenoord, his first professional club, would be his last having signed for the Dutch club in January.

"When I have to stop? That is probably at the end of this season," Van Persie said.

"I will be 36 years old and will have been a professional for 18 years. From the age of five, I've only been involved in football."

Van Persie, who has 50 goals from 102 appearances for Netherlands, won the UEFA Cup with Feyenoord as a teenager in 2002 before joining Arsenal two years later.

He spent eight seasons working under Arsene Wenger, scoring 132 goals in 278 matches as he matured into one of the best forwards in world football – although trophies were elusive with only one FA Cup to show for his time in North London.

A shock £24m move to Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United in 2012 brought immediate reward as he inspired United to the Premier League title in what proved to be the great manager’s final season in charge.

Diminishing returns under David Moyes and then Louis van Gaal saw Van Persie move to Turkish club Fenerbahce in 2015, before rejoining Feyenoord in 2017 and winning the Dutch cup last season.

Van Persie was a member of the Dutch teams who lost the World Cup final in 2010 and then came third in 2014. He also won back-to-back Golden Boot awards in his final two seasons at Arsenal, as well as the PFA Player of the Year award in 2012.