Former Premier League star started in MMA and his result surprised everyone

Croatian Dejan Lovren, former Liverpool England defender and current Zenit Saint Petersburg player, was encouraged to put the ball aside for a day to enter the world of mixed martial arts. However, his foray into this new discipline was far from successful. The 31-year-old footballer took a beating loss from his compatriot Mirko Cro Cop.

The fight lasted less than a minute and was seen by a group of close associates of both contenders who only managed to laugh out loud at each movement inside the Octagon. Lovren tried to resist - intuitively, without clear fighting technique - but his rival overpowered him with a crowbar to his right arm. Once the fight was over, the footballer was lying on the floor, exhausted, but with a smile on his face.

Dejan Lovren, happy with his first time in MMA

"This morning I had a short training session with Cro Cop", the former Liverpool wrote on his Instagram account in the post in which he shared the video of the fight. “This man is still a beast. He has been a great pleasure. Thank you, Mirko”, he added. Far from being frustrated by the loss, the defender was proud to have encouraged himself to face a fighter with enormous experience.

Mirko Cro Cop's a living MMA legend

Mirko Cro Cop, 46, is a mixed martial arts legend from Croatia. He has fought in the UFC, the most important company in the world, and also in other divisions such as Pride, Bellator and Rizin Promotions. Throughout his career he accumulated a record of 38 victories in 52 contests. Before his retirement in 2019 due to the shock caused by a stroke that could be controlled by the doctors, he had accumulated ten consecutive wins. This seasoned fighter also had his glory days in kick boxing, where he accumulated 26 victories in 34 appearances.