Former Manchester United midfielder Philip Mulryne has taken an unusual post-football career step.

Last Saturday he was ordained a deacon, the last step before he becomes a priest.

The Northern Irishman earned 27 caps for his country in a career that included spells with Norwich and Cardiff City, the Daily Mail reports.

While many ex-players go into coaching or television punditry, Mulryne has ditched his life of glamour for something of a more spiritual existence.
The 38-year-old was ordained by the Archbishop of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin, on Saturday and is now a member of the Dominican Order.

Twenty years ago, Mulryne made his debut for United under Sir Alex Ferguson, but now he is well on the way to being ordained as a priest in 2017. 

The former team-mate of David Beckham and Ryan Giggs was also in the news last month, when he was declared bankrupt at Belfast's High Court.

Mulryne earned up to £500,000 during his playing career, even dating glamorous model Nicola Chapman, who appeared on Real Footballer's Wives 2005.

Now, though, he has turned his back on that life, first enrolling at the Pontifical Irish College in Rome in 2009.

He had previously spent two years studying philosophy in Italy, before undertaking a four-year theology degree in Belfast.