diff --git a/VERSION b/VERSION
index f225a78..aedc15b 100644
--- a/VERSION
+++ b/VERSION
@@ -1 +1 @@
-2.5.2
+2.5.3
diff --git a/app/routers_v3/players.py b/app/routers_v3/players.py
index 1b5a394..343a4ce 100644
--- a/app/routers_v3/players.py
+++ b/app/routers_v3/players.py
@@ -117,12 +117,13 @@ async def patch_player(
 ):
     """Patch a player (partial update)."""
     # Build dict of provided fields
-    data = {}
+    # IMPORTANT: Capture locals() BEFORE creating data dict to avoid including 'data' itself
     locals_dict = locals()
+    data = {}
     for key, value in locals_dict.items():
-        if key not in ('player_id', 'token') and value is not None:
+        if key not in ('player_id', 'token', 'locals_dict') and value is not None:
             data[key] = value
-    
+
     return PlayerService.patch_player(player_id, data, token)