JERMAINE JENAS says he feels physically sick when he looks back at his football career.
The now 41-year-old burst on to the scene with his hometown team Nottingham Forest aged 17 back in 2001.
Just a year later he got his big move to the Premier League with Newcastle United, where he went on to win the PFA Young Player of the Year award in his first season there.
Jenas’ performances were also recognised on the international stage as Sven-Goran Eriksson handed him an England debut in February 2003.
Tottenham swooped to sign Jenas in 2005 and he helped them to League Cup success before he began to suffer a number of injury issues.
He had loan spells at both Aston Villa and back at Forest before he joined QPR in 2013, however, the midfielder was forced to retire the following year through a knee injury.
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Jenas, who won 21 England caps during his career and went to the 2006 World Cup, has since enjoyed an impressive career on TV.
He has worked on both BT Sport and BBC’s Match of the Day while also earning a regular slot as host of The One Show.
However, despite that success in his second career, he revealed his anguish and disappointment when he looks back at his footballing days during an interview with the Big Issue.
He said: “It’s not spoken about enough in sport – we see all the success stories but there’s more people that live with regrets.
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“I played for England, played Champions League football, went to a World Cup, won a major trophy, and played in every great stadium there is. But I think if I was to tell my younger self, he would have said that’s good, but you should have done more.
“It’s something I’ve found very hard to make peace with. Even saying it now physically makes me feel sick.
“So I have to tell myself well done, you achieved things in the game. But from a sporting perspective, my younger self would ask me a few questions.”
But there is one moment in particular that he would love to go back to as he revealed: “If I could relive a day from my career it would be when I was PFA Young Player of the Year.
“I was 19 years old, sitting with Sir Bobby Robson who had bought me for a lot of money the year before, and it felt like I had paid him back. The gamble was justified.
“Alan Shearer, Kieron Dyer and the Newcastle chairman were there and to get up in front of the PFA and for them to have voted for me was huge.
“I underestimated it a bit at a time. But there’s no greater feeling than being honoured by your fellow professionals.
“I wouldn’t mind living that day again because it was a long journey to get there.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
