Jermaine Pennant: 20 years since Arsenal paid 2m for the wonderkid who went from Champions League final to Jeremy Kyle

Jermaine Pennant: 20 years since Arsenal paid 2m for the wonderkid who went from Champions League final to Jeremy Kyle
Jermaine Pennant had an interesting career as a footballer and it is 20 years since that journey started when Arsenal signed him as a 15-year-old.On February 8, 1999, the Gunners signed the teenager for a deal worth 2million from Notts County and it was a record for a trainee at the time.From there he went on to play in the Premier League more than 200 times, a Champions League final with Liverpool, spent 30 days in prison and last year ended up on the Jeremy Kyle show.4

Jermaine Pennant was signed by Arsenal as a 15-year-old

The obviously talented youngster was quickly snapped up from the Nottingham club, who were managed by Sam Allardyce at the time, and seemed destined to stardom in north London.Pennant claims he had no choice in the matter and his dad arrived with an agent in a Range Rover and drove him down the M1 from the Nottingham council estate he lived on.4

Pennant playing in the Champions League final for Liverpool in 2007

He struggled to cope with the move at first and was homesick after leaving all his friends and family behind at such a young ageIt was not until 2003 that he made his full Premier League debut for the Gunners but it was worth the wait as he scored a hat-trick against Southampton. Not bad for someone who was still hungover from the night before, as he revealed in an interview with FourFourTwo.Pennant was frustrated with his lack of game time, he only made five starts in seven years with Arsenal, and had a reputation of partying the night before training and games and then turning up late. He was shipped out on loan to Watford, Leeds United and Birmingham by Arsene Wenger and by 2005 the loan to the Blues was made permanent in a 3million deal.Before the transfer was completed, Pennant was convicted of drink-driving, driving while disqualified, and having no insurance. His punishment was being sent to prison for 90 days.Upon release after serving a third of his sentence, he had to play with a tag on his ankle and still struggled with discipline problems in the midlands.4

Jermaine Pennant had to play with a tag

The most successful time of his career came when he moved to Liverpool for 6.7million and featured in the 2007 Champions League final.After Liverpool he became a bit of a journeyman and played at Real Zaragoza, Stoke, Wolves, Pune City, Wigan, Bury and Billericay Town in the Bostik Premier Division.Throughout his career, he developed a reputation as a playboy footballer and shot back to fame earlier in 2018 when he released his autobiographyMental: Bad Behaviour and the Beautiful Game.4

Pennant played for Billericay in the Bostik Premier

With his football career now finished, Pennant has been publicising the book and appearing on numerous shows, includingCelebrity Big Brother.His latest surprise TV appearance came on The Jeremy Kyle Show, with Pennant shocking viewers by explaining some of his antics as a footballer.Pennant, 35, was also asked to take a lie detector test to find out if he had been unfaithful to his wife, Alice Goodwin, who appeared alongside him on the show. He had all the talent needed to reach the top of football but he never quite reached the heights expected of him.Still, he had a pretty decent career youve got to have something about you to make more than 200 appearances in the Premier League and play in a Champions League final.Pennant said in an interview reflecting on his career: I have had a good career Im not unhappy but I couldve done more, I know that. I could have made more of myself and my ability.

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