Former Everton and England defender Phil Jagielka has announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 41.
Jagielka spent the first seven years of his senior career with Sheffield United before joining Everton upon the Blades’ relegation from the Premier League in 2007.
He then spent 12 years at Goodison Park, becoming club captain in 2013 and making 322 Premier League appearances for the Toffees, who he helped to the FA Cup final in 2009.
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Jagielka returned to Sheffield United for a second two-year spell after leaving Everton in 2019, before enjoying stints with Derby County and Stoke City in the Championship.
Having been released after featuring regularly for the Potters last season, Jagielka said a lack of offers to continue pushed him into his decision.
He told Sky Sports: “As you can tell by the timing, I’ve tried to put myself out there for a little bit longer to see if anyone fancied giving me an opportunity to extend it, but they didn’t and I understand that.
“I’m super proud of myself to play at 40. If you’d have sat me down as a 15 or 16-year-old kid after being told I wasn’t good enough, and then fast forward telling me I’d scored at 40, played at 40 and had the career I’ve had… I don’t think I can have too many complaints.
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“I managed to stay in and around the England setup for close to a decade and somehow managed to get 40 caps. I scored a few goals along the way and thankfully captained the team.
“Playing for your country is an amazing achievement and it wasn’t something I expected to do. I got released at 15 or 16 and managed to bounce back all the way to the top.”
Asked whether he was likely to move into coaching, Jagielka said: “I don’t know. I always said that when I retired it was going to be golf, golf, golf! But I’m just going to take a bit of time out.”
Jagielka scored three goals in his 40 senior England appearances, also being named in Roy Hodgson’s squads for Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
