Wesley Sneijder shows a surprising physical change after retiring.

The discipline in football, in every sense, is key for players to go far in their careers. However, that aspect changes in many athletes when retirement comes, as happened with Wesley Sneijder: he has had a surprising transformation compared to his professional days.

The renowned Dutch forward participated in a charity match last Thursday, with the aim of raising funds for people affected in Ukraine due to the war with Russia. The event featured several international stars, but the presence of the former footballer caught attention.

As seen in some images viralized on social media, Wesley Sneijder appears to be a few kilos heavier, completely forgetting the slim figure he had when displaying his talent for Ajax, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Galatasaray, Nice, or Al Gharafa in Qatar.

At 37 years old, without the pressure of being concerned about his physical state, the forward enjoys his free time. Let's remember that the acclaimed attacker from the Netherlands officially retired in 2019, although he did not distance himself from the sport, as at that time he became part of the board of directors of Utrecht, a club from his country.

Precisely, during a match of the mentioned team, Wesley Sneijder had already shown the radical change in his figure, even though it hadn't been many months since he said goodbye to the fields. There were even rumors that he could join the squad to play again, but that possibility did not materialize.

Sneijder and his alcohol problems

A few years ago, Sneijder revealed in his book some problems he experienced due to addiction. "I was young and I liked success and being the center of attention. There were no drugs, but alcohol," Wesley recounted.

"I got used to living like a star. You're adored as a Real Madrid player and I went out spending thousands of euros. After my divorce, I was alone and saw very little of my son. I also didn't realize that the bottle of vodka had become my best friend," he added regarding that stage in his life.