Former Real Madrid and Everton star Royston Drenthe forced to retire at 36 as madcap career ends in fallout
FORMER Everton and Real Madrid star Royston Drenthe has announced his retirement from football.
Drenthe, 36, was part of the Netherlands Under-21 side that won the Euro’s in 2007, beating England en route to the final as he was named Player of the Tournament.
On Friday he called time on his career after being deemed surplus to requirements at Dutch club Kozakken Boys.
Speaking to ESPN on the move, he said: “The realisation that this is the end is definitely hard to swallow.”
However, Drenthe has already planned out his next steps.
He added: “I’ll think about that next week. I don’t want to become a coach anyway, but something with technical policy, that seems like something to me.
“The focus is now on working for TV. There are some really fun, new projects coming up.”
Drenthe had a tumultuous football career that saw him star for 15 different clubs across England, Holland, Spain, Turkey, Russia and the United Arab Emirates.
His career even included an initial retirement in 2016, before returning in 2018.
Some of his most notable spells came with Real Madrid, Everton, Reading and Sparta Rotterdam.
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But it was his off-pitch antics which often made the headlines.
Drenthe had career spells as a rapper, actor, TV pundit, healthcare worker and fashion shopkeeper.
He admitted he was not ready to be a footballer and said his party lifestyle was a big hindrance during his early career.
The winger and left-back had starred alongside the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema at Madrid.
His Madrid spell was followed by his time with Russian side Alania Vladikavkaz, a time when he recalls drinking vodka on the team bus to deal with the boredom he experienced there.
Drenthe was also named a shock candidate to take over from Daniel Craig as James Bond thanks in part to his previous acting role as a gangsta in Dutch crime drama Mocro Maffia in 2021.