One of the Czech Republic’s most famous football exports is returning to the country after playing abroad for fifteen years, reports iDnes.cz.
Tomáš Rosický, captain of the Czech Republic’s national team, became a free agent after his contract with UK club Arsenal expired in July following the 2015-16 season.
The 36-year-old midfielder, who earned the nickname “Little Mozart” during his international play, will return to the Czech league to play for AC Sparta Praha, widely considered to be the country’s most successful club.
An official announcement will take place during a press conference this afternoon.
In Sparta, Rosický is returning to the team he started out with in the late 1990s for what may be his final seasons. The footballer missed the first half of the 2015-16 campaign with a leg injury before returning for a celebrated finish to his ten-year career with Arsenal.
In 2001, Rosický was transferred from Sparta to Germany’s Borussia Dortmund for 500 million CZK, which is still a record amount for a Czech export.
He was signed by Arsenal in 2006, and won back-to-back FA Cup titles with the team for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons.
Rosický earned the title of Czech footballer of the year three times, in 2001, 2002, and 2006.