A former football player who played for Newcastle, Everton, and Crystal Palace wants to play again.
A former Newcastle United footballer has opened up about his struggles to find a club this summer as he aims to start a new chapter in his career.
13-time England international Andros Townsend was signed by ex-Newcastle manager Steve McClaren in January 2016 for a figure of around £12m.
He impressed during his six-month stay on Tyneside and recorded four goals and two assists in 13 appearances. However, he was unable to prevent the club from being relegated to the Championship and departed in the summer of 2016.
Townsend has played in the Premier League for both Crystal Palace and Everton since leaving St James’ Park, but since the end of last season due to the expiration of his contract at Goodison Park, he has been without a club.
Townsend, who is 32 years old, is still optimistic about returning to professional football after a 13-month absence due to an anterior cruciate injury.
The former England winger trained with Burnley during the summer with the hopes of playing football again. He put on an impressive performance in the preseason match against Real Betis and was confident about getting a contract offer, but manager Vincent Kompany ultimately decided against signing the player.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5’s Monday Night Club he reflected on his disappointment, Townsend said: “To get offered a contract, to get to the day you’re signing the contract, and you’re just waiting for the paperwork to come through.
“Honestly, I left that conversation in tears. I was literally in tears because I felt like my Premier League dream was over. And yeah, it was one of the toughest moments of my career.”
Townsend explained he was very confident of receiving an offer over the summer and had even started house hunting in Lancashire.
“If I were bad and knew I wasn’t going to get a contract,
I could prepare myself,” he continued. But the news that the contract was no longer available while I was looking at homes, considering schools, and discussing squad sizes devastated my world. To digest what happens next and to wrap my brain around it, it took me about a week.
Since then, the 32-year-old has spoken with other clubs in Turkey and Saudi Arabia, but those offers have also fallen through.
The winger is still eager to go back into football, and according to sources from the Daily Mail, he is currently working out with his old team, Tottenham, to improve his match fitness.
The article suggests that is currently training away from the first team picture and that Ange Postecoglou is not considering him as a first squad possibility.
Townsend, a graduate of the Tottenham system, spent 16 years as a member of the team and made 50 Premier League appearances for them.
Leave a Reply