Premier League champion looks unrecognisable six years after leaving English football for good

A former Premier League winner looks completely different years after retiring from football.

An ex-Chelsea and Fulham star has gone viral online as he and his friends take on a brutal social media challenge.

The forward spent 18 months at Chelsea between 2013 and 2015 and was part of the squad that won the Premier League in the 2014/15 season.

However, just four years after he retired from football, the Premier League winner is completely unrecognisable.

Andre Schurrle joined Chelsea from Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen in 2013 for a reported fee of £18million.

At the time, the German was regarded as one of the most exciting wingers in Europe, and went on to score 14 goals in 65 games while winning both the Premier League and Carabao Cup under former manager Jose Mourinho.

The winger then left England to return to GermanyWolfsburg where he won the German Cup and German SuperCup, before coming back to play for Fulham in 2018, scoring six times in only 25 appearances.

And now, after retiring in 2020 aged just 29, Schurrle now regularly spends time hiking, and has recently posted photos and videos of him and his friends taking on the infamous iceman challenge, for the third time.

The challenge, created by Dutch extreme athlete and motivational speaker Wim Hof, involves taking on brutal mountain hikes in freezing cold temperatures while wearing without wearing anything to cover your chest.

Completing it displays both physical and mental strength, and this year is the third time that Schurrle and his friends, dressed only in shorts, shoes and a beanie hat have successfully completed it.

Former Chelsea and Fulham star Andre Schurrle now takes on hiking challenges in extreme conditions. (Image: andreschuerrle Instagram)

Speaking while taking on the challenge on his Instagram, the 53-year-old said: “Look at us! What a day! Pushed through the absolute limit! With my brothers!

“The coldest I have ever been! Discomfort! Pain! Suffer! Growth!”

In 2023, completed a similar challenge as he documented his journey up the the highest mountain in Germany, The Zugspitze, at 2am while temperatures were welll below freezing.

Once again, the German wore only a pair of shorts, hiking boots and gloves as he reached the peak of just below 3,000 metres above sea level.