Ben Foster comes OUT of retirement to sign for Ryan Reynolds’ Wrexham
Footballer turned YouTuber Ben Foster comes out of retirement to sign for Ryan Reynolds’ Wrexham, just a month after Tottenham failed to bring him in as a cover for Hugo Lloris… the 39-year-old returning to the Welsh side 18 years later to go out
- Ben Foster has signed with non-league side Wrexham until the end of the season.
- Tottenham wanted to sign the goalkeeper after Hugo Lloris was injured
- Foster called his earlier spell at Wrexham “the springboard of his career”.
Ben Foster has come out of retirement to sign for Wrexham until the end of the season in a stunning coup for the National League leaders.
His move comes just a month after Tottenham failed to lure Foster to north London as cover for injured goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
The former Premier League star, who carved out successful spells at Manchester United, Birmingham, West Brom and Watford, will return to the Welsh side for the first time in 18 years, having played there on loan in 2005.
Since his initial retirement, the 39-year-old star has hosted ‘Fozcast – The Ben Foster Podcast’, which has 175,000 YouTube subscribers, and will now join Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney at The Racecourse Ground.
On signing for the club, Foster said: ‘I’m over the moon. I’ve been in the Club an hour this morning and it looks like a really nice place. Everyone is down to earth and top class from the manager.
Goalkeeper Ben Foster has come out of retirement to sign for Wrexham of the National League
He will now be joined by Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds (left) and Rob McElhenney (right).
A lot has changed since the last time I was here, but it’s good to be back and it’s also good to be back as a player. It will be interesting to see how my body feels after today’s workout! I’m wishing to start.
“The first time I was here, it was really the springboard for the rest of my career: after the loan, playing in the LDV Vans Trophy final at the Millennium Stadium, I got my transfer to Manchester United at the beginning of the next season. It was absolutely crazy!
“If you had told me 18 years ago that I would have had the career I’ve had, I probably wouldn’t have believed you to be honest, so I owe a lot to Wrexham.”
The club added in a statement on its website: ‘Wrexham AFC are delighted to confirm the signing of goalkeeper Ben Foster until the end of the season.
The experienced goalkeeper, 39, returns to the Racecourse Ground 18 years after his last match for the Club, in a loan spell that included a starring role in the successful LDV Vans Trophy final at the Millennium Stadium.
Foster’s impressive performance during the 2005 final caught the eye of former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, whose son Darren was playing during Wrexham’s 2-0 win over Southend.
The Red Devils signed Foster from his parent club Stoke City that summer, following his fruitful loan spell at Wales.
The former Premier League star has been without a club since the end of last season, when he left Watford following the Hornets’ relegation from the top flight.
The goalkeeper quickly attracted the interest of Carabao Cup finalists Newcastle but decided against it in an effort to stay close to his family.
He hosts ‘Fozcast – The Ben Foster Podcast’ which now has 175,000 YouTube subscribers.
on his podcast The FozcastFoster revealed how he was contacted by agent Richard Lee last summer, who told him the Magpies were keen to sign him ‘as soon as possible’ and had offered him an ‘anything you want’ contract.
‘if I go up there [to Newcastle], I could still put on a bit of a face and show, but it won’t be me,’ he revealed last September. “I have to be happy, I have to be comfortable and I won’t be able to do it if I’m so far from my family.”
Spurs’ attempt to bring Foster out of retirement last month was blocked by the Premier League under its current rules.
In certain circumstances, clubs are allowed to register players outside of the transfer window and require a special waiver to do so.
More to follow.
