Former Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Davy Propper retires from football

Former Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Davy Propper has announced his retirement from football.

The 30-year-old has had his contract with Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven terminated by mutual consent, 18 months before it was due to expire.

After four years at the Amex Stadium, Propper returned to the Netherlands with PSV in June; however, the midfielder has revealed that he "does not feel comfortable in the football culture" which is one of the reasons why he has decided to hang up his boots.

"I am very grateful to [PSV] that they have brought me this summer. I hoped that with my return to the Netherlands, the pleasure in football would also return," Propper told PSV's official website.

"Unfortunately, that has not been so easy, partly because I do not feel comfortable in the football culture. Nevertheless, I have long adapted to it and sometimes closed myself off to it. I don't want that anymore and that's why I'm done with it now.

Good luck for the future, @DavyPropper. 💙

Our former midfielder has announced his retirement from the game. 🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/HyKNoqwZNb

— Brighton & Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC) January 4, 2022

Davy Pröpper stopt als profvoetballer bij PSV. De 30-jarige middenvelder had nog een contract voor 1,5 jaar bij PSV, maar dat is nu ontbonden.

''Ik heb voor de Kerst de knoop doorgehakt en dat voelt als een opluchting. Hierdoor weet ik dat het de juiste keuze is''

— PSV (@PSV) January 4, 2022

"I'm going to find out exactly what I want, where my passions and interests lie and what I want to pick up. Of course, I have also had many beautiful moments that I cherish.

"Am I not going to miss playing football? We'll see. For now, I want to thank my family, relatives and friends for all the support I have received from them. Now I have time to invest in them."

Propper made 121 appearances across all competitions for Brighton between 2017 and 2021, and has also featured 105 times across two spells with PSV, including eight this campaign.

The Vitesse academy graduate also represented the Netherlands at international level on 17 occasions, scoring three goals.