'I played 308 times for Liverpool but should have retired at 26 - I became a mercenary'

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I had my meniscus (knee cartilage) taken out when I was 18 or 19 and I played again 12 days later, which was just completely ridiculous.“I retired at 31 but I should have retired at 26 or 27. At the end it was just almost mercenary, doing it for the money and I didn’t enjoy it – I couldn’t play to the level I wanted.

I was doing it for the wrong reasons, but you think you’ve got a family and you’re a long time retired. But it wasn’t just his dad who came from a football background, given his grandad was also a player, while Jamie’s cousin, Frank Lampard, went on to become one of the greatest Premier League stars of all time.Jamie Redknapp was a fixture in the Liverpool team (Image: Getty)Reflecting on his upbringing, the ex-Liverpool ace said: “If I started saying I wished I’d done this and that, people would think ‘what a greedy git’!

I did everything I wanted to from being a kid – playing in the Premier League, playing for and captaining Liverpool, playing for my country, I had an amazing time. It would be remiss of me to say I’ve got regrets when I’ve been so fortunate.