BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 01: Head Coach Andoni Iraola of Bournemouth during a press conference at Vitality Stadium on September 01, 2023 in Bournemouth, England. (Photo by Robin Jones - AFC Bournemouth/AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images)
Former Liverpool star Jordon Ibe signs for non-league club in shock return to football
Jordon Ibe, 27, has joinednal League side Natio Ebbsfleet United – seven years after the winger left Liverpool to join Bournemouth in a landmark £15million transfer
Former Liverpool and Bournemouth winger Jordon Ibe has returned to football with National League side Ebbsfleet United.
Ibe scored four goals in 58 first-team appearances for the Reds – the majority of which came when he was still a teenager – before completing a £15million move to the Cherries in 2016. He made 92 appearances for the South Coast club, having previously had spells at Birmingham and Derby.
However, things did not go to plan for the winger in the years since, playing just a handful of games since the 2018-19 campaign. The former England Under-21 international has opened up on his mental health struggles in the past as he tried to cope with his career struggles.
Ibe barely featured for Bournemouth in the 2019-20 campaign and joined Derby the following year in the Championship, but his first-team outings were limited to just three minutes. He subsequently joined Turkish club Adanaspor, but he did not feature for the club and became a free agent last year.
He has now been signed by fifth-tier side Ebbsfleet and was named in the squad to face Slough Town in the FA Cup qualification round on Saturday. Now aged 27, he is hoping to resurrect his career at Ebbsfleet.
Speaking to the club’s website, Ibe has explained: “I just want to get back out there, show people what I can do again and play football. I’ve worked hard to be in a position where I am able to focus on football and believe in myself and my ability to contribute on the pitch.
