A FORGOTTEN Premier League ace pulls pints in his local boozer – but hasn’t called time on his football career.
Defender Ryan Shotton, 35, scored in Europe and landed an FA Cup runner’s up medal during his top-flight career with Stoke City.
He was a regular starter for the Potters under their iconic boss Tony Pulis and racked up more than 300 appearances across England’s top two divisions.
Now aged 35, the former star is still plying his trade with non-league minnows Hanley Town – which he couples with running a village pub.
Shotton is currently player-manager of the Staffordshire-based club who compete in the Northern Premier League West, English football’s eighth tier.
He scored in The Blues’ 2-0 home win over Clitheroe on Saturday in front of just 111 fans – 12 years after netting in Stoke’s 3-0 Europe League win over Maccabi Tel-Aviv.
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Posting a picture of Shotton celebrating his goal, Hanley Town wrote on X: “Played at the highest level of football in the Premier League.
“Scored in the Europa League.
“Look at what scoring for little Hanley Town means.
“We building.”
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Shotton, who clocked up 48 Premier League appearances for Stoke, has plenty to keep him occupied off the pitch.
He is the co-owner of the Black Lion pub near his home in the Staffordshire village of Cheddleton.
Shotton teamed up with his dad-in-law Dave Goodwin to buy the boozer in 2017, while playing for Middlesbrough under former Stoke boss Tony Pulis.
Speaking in 2018, Shotton said: “Deliveries come in at half six and I’m up then
“Lads drop the barrels off and one will have a Carling, because he does’t need to drive, and the other will have a coffee.
“Carling at half 6 in the morning!? I was like, ‘Nah, I’ll just stick to my cup of tea’. I’ve always seen myself as grounded as possible. My mum made sure of that when I was growing up.
“I just think getting back into reality, the people in the pub care you’re doing well but really, I’m just seen as a normal person, which I love.
“The father-in-law used to go there from when he was 18, he was a big fan and it got refurbished. A guy bought it and said to us, ‘I can’t manage it, I’ll sell it to you two (me and David) and I said, ‘Why not?’ It’s a brilliant little boozer, proper little country pub, two fires, brilliant.”
Shotton is not the only ex-Premier League star gracing the Northern Premier League West, whose clubs include City of Liverpool, Runcorn Linnets and Kidsgrove Athletic.
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We revealed this month how former Burney stalwart Matt Lowton, 34, has signed for lowly Witton Albion.
The Cheshire club are managed ex-Republic of Ireland international Jon Macken, who played for the likes of Manchester City, Crystal Palace and Derby.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
