Mesut Ozil has shocked football fans in recent weeks with a stunning body transformation after posting videos and photos of his new physique on social media. He isn’t the only player who has become a bigger player after retiring.
The former Arsenal midfielder called it quits last year at the age of 34 and has made no secret of the fact that the gym is now his second home after quitting the game.
However, he isn’t the only player who has turned to weights after the end of his career. Former Liverpool and Chelsea striker Fernando Torres also swapped his lean physique for a hefty one, which certainly surprised many.
Perhaps one of the most infamous body transformations came from former Werder Bremen goalkeeper Tim Wiese when he left the football field for the WWE.
There are more among these three players. Mail Sport looks at the game’s former stars who have put in serious hours in the gym after retirement.
Do you recognize this ex-player? It’s Mesut Özil, his transformation in the gym was impressive
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Mesut Ozil
We have to start here. Many people were surprised when Ozil first shared his new physique in a video showing his intense training sessions.
The 35-year-old, who won the World Cup with Germany in 2014, has always been known as a lean and skilful player during his top-level career.
In his playing days, Özil was mainly deployed as an attacking midfielder, scoring 114 goals and providing 221 assists in 645 career appearances. He deceived defenses with his eye for a pass and controlled games for fun during his time at Real Madrid and Arsenal.
Although they were often unable to get close to Ozil, the defenders would have imagined themselves in a 50/50 battle with the German. I’m not sure they would do that now.
Ozil’s muscular figure is in stark contrast to what he looked like as a player.
Ozil shared on Instagram his impressive body transformation (right), which illustrates the amount of muscle he has gained compared to his lean physique at Arsenal (left in 2019)
Fernando Torres
This is a transformation that most football fans are aware of. Torres sent social media into a frenzy in 2021 when an ad for AW8 showed off his impressive body transformation.
The former Liverpool striker known as ‘El Nino’ cut a thin figure as he terrorized defenses with his pace and skill in his prime.
Torres scored 85 Premier League goals during his time at the Reds and Chelsea between 2007 and 2014, but is now coach of Atletico Madrid’s Under 19s.
He was certainly strong during his playing days, shaking off former Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic on his way to scoring for Liverpool at Old Trafford, but not many could have anticipated the muscle Torres would gain.
It’s hard to imagine Torres would ever struggle to win games if he were playing at his size now. He demonstrated this in March during Liverpool Legends’ 4-2 victory over Ajax Legends in a charity match.
Torres showed off his new physique in an advertisement for Asian casino website AW8, in 2021
Fernando Torres was skinny when he played for Liverpool (left in 2008) but showed he’s now filling the kit with muscle (right, during a charity match in 2024)
She Roberto
It is quite unusual to see a 49-year-old former footballer more shredded than in his playing days, but this is the case for former Bayern Munich star Ze Roberto.
She Roberto was not your average football player. He only retired at the age of 43 and won the Champions League with Real Madrid, as well as eight major trophies with Bayern Munich.
The former Brazil international, who played as a full-back and midfielder throughout his career, now posts motivational training videos on social media, showing off his handsome physique to almost 2.8 million Instagram followers.
Last year it seemed that Ze Roberto’s self-confidence reached the media, he even claimed that he had a better body than Cristiano Ronaldo.
He told TyC Sports: ‘Today I would say I have a better physique because I played until I was 43.
“If he does, I’ll say it’s him.”
She Roberto retired at the age of 43 and now shares training videos on social media
The former Brazilian star won many trophies during his time at Bayern Munich and Real Madrid
Tim Wiese
Perhaps the most famous body transformation on this list is that of former Werder Bremen goalkeeper Wiese.
Wiese went from diving to keep the ball out of the net in the Bundesliga to diving from the top rope for the WWE in a dramatic career change.
In 2014, the German goalkeeper decided that guarding the net was no longer for him after spending two years as Hoffenheim’s number one.
Wiese was always decently built, but took his muscular physique to a new level before joining the wrestling scene.
Unfortunately for the ex-German international stopper, his move to the WWE didn’t go quite as planned and he left the company in 2017.
Tim Wiese hung up his boots in 2014 to pursue a career in wrestling and joined the WWE
Wiese won six caps for Germany and played for Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga for seven years
Micah Richards
Beloved TV pundit and former Manchester City defender Micah Richards has always been open about his love for the gym, so we have to have him on this list.
Yes, Richards was already a muscular figure during his playing career, but he has still added a significant amount of muscle mass to his already strong physique after his retirement.
I guess you could say that Richards gradually got bigger during his career, which was sadly cut short five years ago, but if we compare him to his early days you can see the difference in size.
While he may not show it on social media like some other ex-players, it’s pretty clear that Richards regularly hits the gym in his spare time.
Micah Richards has always had a muscular body (left in 2008) and has only added to it since his retirement (right in 2023)
Antonio Valencia
Another player who was already big and strong during his playing days was Antonio Valencia, but he has become even bigger.
When Valencia burst onto the scene with Wigan in 2008, he was a skinny, quick winger who caused a lot of problems for Premier League defenses.
Antonio Valencia was always strong during his Manchester United days (left in 2009) but now shows off his bulky physique (right)
However, Valencia became visibly stronger when his career at Manchester United came to an end
After moving to Manchester United, Valencia started to become more muscular over the course of a decade, but nothing compared to his size now.
It’s clear the 38-year-old is a fan of lifting dumbbells.
