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Former Stoke and West Ham winger Matthew Etherington retires aged 33
Etherington had been without a club since the summer after his contract with Stoke ran out, and despite having trained with Championship side Millwall recently, has decided to call time on his career.
He started out at Peterborough, before Tottenham saw his potential and came in for him and Simon Davis in one go. He spent three years at White Hart Lane, but could not establish himself at the club, and moved to West Ham.
He spent six years with the Hammers and made over 150 appearances, before he moving to Stoke in 2009. He again passed the 150 appearance mark for the Potters, but a persistent back injury has forced him to hang up the boots.
Etherington took to Twitter to announce his retirement, stating "Due to an ongoing back problem, the day has come for me to retire from professional football. I have some amazing memories since the day I made my debut at just 15 years old."
"Thank you to all the great clubs I have played for and to the supporters. I have made some mistakes along the way but it has made me who I am today. I look at the past with pride and to the future with optimism."
"Thanks to everyone for the kind messages. Really overwhelming reading them all. Nice to know I left a few good memories during my career."
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