The emotional story of Jordon Ibe: From £15 million Premier League star to non-league sub

Former Liverpool and Bournemouth winger Jordon Ibe made his return to English league football at the weekend, making his Ebbsfleet United debut in the National League (England's fifth tier).

The 28-year-old came on in the 84th minute for the National League side, but the game ended 0-0 with promotion hopefuls Oldham Athletic, as reported by Live Score.

The former Premier League winger has fallen from grace in the last five years, but why? Here is the emotional story of Jordon Ibe.

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Ibe started his career with Wycombe Wanderers in the English Football League and burst onto the scene in League One aged 16.

The winger joined Liverpool in December 2011 and was put into the Red's under-18 team before impressing and making his debut on the final day of the 2012/13 season against QPR.

After spending time on loan at Birmingham City and Derby County, Ibe came back to Liverpool a new player, securing man of the match on his first start back against Everton, according to Sky Sports.

In the 2015/16 season, Ibe became a regular fixture in the Liverpool team, playing 41 times under Jurgen Klopp, scoring four and four assists, and playing in every game of Liverpool's run to the EFL Cup final.

In the summer of 2016, Ibe wanted a better opportunity to start every weekend in the Premier League, joining AFC Bournemouth for a club-record fee of £15 million, as reported by the BBC.

His move to Bournemouth and the heavy price tag affected the former Liverpool winger terribly, failing to live up to the expectations he was set on the south coast.

As reported by The Mirror, Ibe failed to score in 26 appearances for 'The Cherries' and followed up with two goals and eight assists in 38 games in his second.

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In his third and final season for Bournemouth, Ibe registered 24 games and three goals and slipped out of the first-team fold. He was released in June 2020 and joined Derby in September of the same year.

Ibe failed to make any significant impact with Derby County, making only one first-team appearance due to his battle with depression.

In January 2021, Ibe wrote a statement on his Instagram: "I want to apologize to all my fans around the world. I find myself in a dark place due to suffering from depression."

"I will fix myself and this situation, which I'm 100 percent committed to. Not only for my family, close friends, or my beautiful daughter but for me."

The winger spent six months out before joining Turkish club Adanaspor, but he failed to make a single appearance. He has since spent another year out before joining Ebbsfleet in October.

According to Ebbsfleet United's website, Ibe said: "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 can focus on football and believe in myself."

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