Ex-Leicester City youngster’s journey from retiring at 21 to stardom in Cambodia

Jozsef Keaveny had retired from professional football at 21 after a number of severe injuries but an offer from a former coach to take a road less travelled has been life-changing.

“It was kind of a two-footed jump into the unknown,” says Jozsef Keaveny over a crackling phone line from Cambodia. “But I’m glad I’ve done it.” The 22-year-old is enjoying a day off at the beginning of the week in which Angkor Tiger resume their Premier League campaign and reflecting on the path to Siem Reap, where the humidity remains stifling seven months into his stay, it quickly becomes clear that Keaveny carries no regrets.

Turning out in the Cambodian top flight, set to resume Saturday following more than two months off to accommodate various international competitions, may be a long way from his teenage dreams of becoming a Premier League star at Leicester City.

But Keaveny is embracing a path few have taken. He is familiar with when to bow or give the customary lotus hand gesture, aware that it is frowned upon not to be fully clothed on the street and public displays of affection can be seen as disrespectful by the more conservative locals. He is even learning to accept that, in a country where the cost of living is so low, purchasing a punnet of strawberries can feel like extortion.

In full: https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/ex-leicester-city-youngsters-journey-27355538

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