Radamel Falcao Wants to Become Baseball Player Following Football Career

Monaco forward Radamel Falcao has said he will aim to become a professional baseball player when he ends his football career.

At his peak, the Colombia forward was considered one of the best strikers in the world. While he's a little past his best at 33, he is still scoring goals regularly in French football, finding the net 12 times in 25 Ligue 1 appearances for a struggling Monaco side this season.

Speaking to France Football about his career after football, Falcao said he would try his hand at changing sports, noting he'd been inspired by Michael Jordan's switch from basketball to baseball, per ESPN.com:

"I love baseball. When I was young in Venezuela where I grew up, I used to play the sport at a very high level. I often speak about it with my wife. I believe that when I finish my footballing career, I'll try out as a professional baseball player. ...

"Like Jordan, even if he was a basketball player who wasn't able to play in the top leagues at the highest level. I want to become the first to achieve that!"

Jordan, regarded by many as the greatest basketball player of all time, tried his hand at baseball in 1994 and 1995 before returning to the NBA.

Falcao's focus this season will still be on Monaco, as the team remain in a battle to stay afloat in the top flight.

Following the departure of Thierry Henry as coach and the reappointment of Leonardo Jardim, the team's fortunes have improved on the domestic front. Monaco are now on a six-game run without losing and have put six points between themselves and Dijon, who are languishing in 18th place with a game in hand.

Despite the struggles Henry endured during his time with the principality club, Falcao has backed him to be a successful boss in the future, per French football journalist Jeremy Smith:

One of the big positives for Monaco as of late has been the improved form of Falcao. The veteran scored twice away at Angers when his team were two goals down, earning a 2-2 draw, and a week later he opened the scoring in the 1-1 draw with Bordeaux.

It's shown that Falcao still has a lot to offer at a high level in football, albeit he is no longer the force he once was. As a result, it may be a while yet before we see him don a baseball uniform.