Neil Malley

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 He was on the verge of playing for England. He was playing the best football of his life for Blackburn Rovers, even scoring the opening goal to win the 2002 League Cup final. Then, in a split second, on a holiday in Rome, his entire world was shattered. His name is Matt Jansen. And his story is one of the most heartbreaking "what ifs" in the history of English football. In the summer of 2002, Matt was living the dream. He was 24 years old. He had just finished a stellar season in the Premier League, scoring 16 goals across all competitions. Sven-Goran Eriksson, the England manager, was watching him closely. He was so close to making the 2002 World Cup squad that he had already been measured for the official England team suit. Then came the fateful trip to Rome to celebrate missing out on the squad. He hired a moped to travel around the historic city with his fiancée, Lucy. In a flash, they were involved in a horrific crash with a taxi. Matt was thrown from the moped, landing heavily on his head. He was rushed to the hospital with a fractured skull and a massive bleed on the brain. He spent six days in a coma, fighting for his life. The doctors initially feared he wouldn't survive, but a subconscious squeeze of Lucy's hand showed he was still fighting. When he finally woke up, the physical damage was devastating. The brain injury had severely impacted his nervous system and coordination. The simple, natural instinct of playing football was gone; he now had to consciously "think" just to move his limbs. Against all odds, just six months later, Matt Jansen miraculously returned to the pitch. He pulled on the Blackburn shirt again. He even scored goals again. But he was never the same player. The sharpness was gone. The elite-level instinct had vanished. The brain injury had robbed him of his edge, leaving him trapped in a body that could no longer execute what his footballing brain wanted to do. He struggled to regain his form, leading to loan spells and transfers to Coventry City, Bolton Wanderers, and eventually his hometown club, Carlisle United. But the internal, mental toll was the most devastating part. He fell into a deep depression. He turned to alcohol and sleeping pills to numb the psychological agony of his faded talent. He felt like a failure. He felt like he had let everyone down. The despair grew so dark that he even contemplated taking his own life by overdosing on pills. "I didn't want to be here anymore," he later admitted in his autobiography. It seemed as though the crash had taken everything from him, even his will to live. But Matt Jansen refused to be defined by his darkest moments. He sought professional help. He tackled his mental health struggles, overcame his dependencies, and rebuilt his life from the ground up. He moved into coaching, managing non-league side Chorley to success, and dedicated himself to helping young players navigate both football and the fragility of life. He channeled his journey into a powerful autobiography called "What Was, What Is and What Might Have Been." It is a brutally honest account of a world-class career halted by a random twist of fate, and a life bravely rebuilt from the ruins. Matt Jansen was supposed to be an England superstar. He was supposed to conquer the football world. But he became something far more important. He became a survivor. He became proof that a shattered brain can heal, and a broken spirit can be mended. He proved that even when the dream dies, the man remains. That is the real story of Matt Jansen. Not the crash. The fight to live again.

Nothing is topping this today. 😂

I see a lot of people asking what grounds etc would we be doing this on. In my opinion it’ll be some sort of defamation - considering the fact that ‘The Overlap’ etc have however many million views etc and Carra’s basically said we’d never win the CL and PL etc. It might be true, but anyone maybe looking to support a team or newly getting into football and then seeing that clip and seeing him basically laugh at Villa challenging - that’ll put em off. Fair play Sawiris - Don’t try to take us for mugs now. We’re a serious club. #AVFC

Aston Villa have announced plans to initiate legal action against pundit Jamie Carragher for his “unacceptable insults” about the club. Villa released a statement signed off by chairman Nassef Sawiris on Friday on their social media. nyti.ms/4zpraFc

Tommy Robinson found guilty of harassing Daily Mail reporters dailymail.com/news/article-1… via @DailyMail

🚨🇬🇧 Tommy Robinson now: “I appealed for calm the whole time”. Tommy Robinson then: “That anger is justified! I’m surprised it took this long!… No one trusts your media! The entire nation is about to break down because of your foolish, weak, cowardly leadership!… Men will rise up! They were always going to rise up! They have to rise up to defend their families!…You brought danger on our shores! You cowards!… Don’t call them hooligans! They are justified in their actions!”