Former Birmingham City, Wrexham, and Plymouth Argyle striker retires at 38

Former Birmingham City striker Matt Derbyshire has announced his retirement from professional football.

After 22-years of playing, Derbyshire is hanging up the boots, with his last club being Bradford City, before his release in May. The 38-year-old having played for 14 clubs, finishes with 177 career goals in 530 games, playing across all four professional divisions in England.

He is most known for his time spent with Blackburn Rovers, where he played 80 games, scoring 20 goals. His most successful spell at a club was in Cyprus with Omonia, where he found the back of the net 69 times in 127 appearances, where he got to play in Europe.

In a statement issued via Instagram, he said: “What a privilege in life to play this wonderful game of football. I have never taken a single day for granted, waking up and being able to do this as my job for the past 22 years.”

He said: “It [his career] has allowed me the privilege to play for my home club Blackburn Rovers, the team that I supported growing up as a local boy and where I made my Premier League debut. I could not and would not have picked a better club to start my journey and will be forever grateful to them.

“I have been so fortunate to have experienced and played in every level of English football and I am so proud to have represented my country. Playing abroad gifted me the experiences of playing [in the] Champions League and Europa League.”

“Experiencing playing for Olympiacos in Greece, winning the double and playing in front of their fans, is something I will never forget. I found a home in Cyprus playing for Omonia Nicosia, which will forever have a piece of my heart and will always be a home to myself and my family. To captain this club was my absolute pleasure and privilege.”

For those that need reminding of Derbyshire's contribution to Birmingham, he joined on loan from Olympiacos in the 2010/11 season. He made 20 appearances for Blues, scoring three goals, but never found the back of the net in the Premier League. Derbyshire helped Birmingham reach the League Cup final where they beat Arsenal, but he wasn't a part of the match day squad.

The Lancashire-born forward also turned out for Plymouth Argyle and Wrexham during the early stages of his career. After leaving Birmingham, he played for Nottingham Forest, Oldham Athletic, Blackpool, Rotherham United, and then Macarthur, AEK Larnaca, and NorthEast United.

He added: “Football has gifted me such life experiences starting at Great Harwood to playing at the other side of the world in Australia. I have loved every second of it.

“I wish I could do it all over again but now it's time for me to pass on my knowledge and help the next generation of young footballers.”