Matt Jansen - my life after Blackburn Rovers

6:10pm Friday 4th July 2008

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By Gary York »

BLACKBURN Rovers fans will always retain a great deal of affection for one-time striking sensation Matt Jansen.

But while many supporters would love to see the baby-faced assassin pull on the Rovers jersey one more time, the likelihood is that Jansen won’t cross that white line again.

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In an exclusive interview with the Lancashire Telegraph, the 30-year-old didn’t go as far as announce his retirement from the game for good.

However, as time ticks away, Jansen is certainly in no rush to strap on his boots again.

He is enjoying more time with his ever-expanding family – as he awaits the birth of his second child in September – and is occupied by various business interests.

“Life’s pretty hectic at the moment,” said Jansen. “I’m doing bits of property, and I’m also learning currency trading.

“I’m getting to know more and more about it on a course, and it’s something I’m really getting stuck into.

“I’m still keeping myself fit. I’m enjoying spending time with my family. I’ve got another one on the way, so I’ll have my work cut out then!”

With plenty of commitments keeping him busy, there is little thought of a return to football.

Jansen’s exit from the professional game two summers ago came just six months after ending his love affair at Rovers.

The Carlisle-born striker became an instant hit at Ewood Park after joining Blackburn from Crystal Palace in a £4.1m deal in January 1999.

He was the star of the Rovers team that clinched promotion to the Premier League in 2001, scoring 24 goals as the club finished behind Division One champions Fulham.

Jansen continued in similar fashion the following campaign as Rovers finished 10th and hoisted the Worthington Cup.

His form led to an England call-up, but he missed out on the 2002 World Cup when manager Sven Goran Eriksson took defender Martin Keown to Japan instead.

Tragedy then struck for Jansen when he suffered serious head injuries following a motorbike accident in the summer of 2002 while holidaying in Rome.

It took him months to recover from those injuries and, despite several comebacks, could not regain the form that made him one of the Premier League’s feared strikers.

At the time, he claimed to have been driven to the brink of depression and, after failing to find his way back into the Rovers line-up under Mark Hughes, asked to be freed from the club.

After failing to resurrect his career with Bolton and in America’s Major League Soccer, Jansen seemingly – and sadly – wandered off the footballing radar altogther.

Lacking – by his own admission – the required motivation to step back into the sport, it could well be that Jansen has played his last competitive game.

“I’ve got options but, at the moment, there are no immediate plans to get back into football,” said the former England U21 international.

“Everybody pretty much knows my history. I just didn’t feel comfortable not being as good as I was.

“I signed a contract with Bolton and they offered me another one.

“But I thought I wasn’t doing myself justice, so I ended up opting out and having some time away.

“You need the desire and the hunger to succeed, whereas I was getting up in the morning and not enjoying going to work.

“With a break – however long – I might get that hunger back and have itchy feet again, so who knows.

“That’s why I’m keeping myself reasonably fit. I know I can’t leave it too long, but we’ll see what happens.

“At the moment, I’m enjoying time with my family. Bringing up kids is a lot harder work than you think – and so is getting nagged by the wife!”

Despite that, Jansen admits he misses some aspects of life as a professional footballer, most notably the limelight he so often enjoyed after scoring for Rovers.

He added: “I do miss that feeling after a game when I’ve perhaps played well and scored a goal. That’s the best feeling.

“Believe it or not, I also miss the training too, and the banter with the lads.

“But, as I say, it’s a case of me really needing to be hungry and desperate to play like I used to.

“I enjoy watching football – and I try watching Rovers as much as I can.

“And I always try to catch up with the lads now and again.

“It’s difficult keeping in touch, but I still speak to Garry Flitcroft, David Dunn and Brad Friedel.”

Jansen believes that any future role in football is likely to be in a coaching capacity.

He already holds an FA Preliminary Coaching Badge and, in time, may look at taking the next step up the ladder.

Jansen said: “I have looked into the coaching side of things.

“I’ve got my preliminary badge already which I completed when I was younger.

“I have that interest in me as well, and I probably will get into it, because you’ve always got it then.

“But I’m only 30 – so I just don’t know.”