Adam Lallana is finishing his four-year stay with Brighton at the end of the season for family reasons.
Brighton head coach Roberto De Zerbi wanted Lallana to continue playing for the club and helping out with coaching, but the 36-year-old former Liverpool and England midfielder has decided the time is right to leave.
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He will depart after the remaining two fixtures at home to Chelsea on Wednesday and Manchester United on Sunday.
Lallana has been living apart from his wife and three children, who are based a two-and-a-half hour drive away along the south coast at Bournemouth.
He said: “At the end of the season, I will be leaving Brighton. It was a tough decision. It just feels like it is the right time, not just for myself but probably for the club as well.
“I’ve been in talks with Roberto for the past couple of months. He expressed his wishes for me to stay and keep playing. But, after taking time to think about it and where the club is at, and having been away from my family for the last four years, I just feel it is the right time.
“I have been speaking to my family throughout the year and I think the biggest influence on my decision was that my kids need me. Just the age they are at, I think they need me around a bit more.
“I’ve been quite selfish throughout my whole career really. They (wife and children) have just kind of had to react to my decisions. I feel as though it is a time in my life and my career where I need to put them first.”
Lallana, an unused substitute in Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Newcastle, has made 103 appearances for Brighton since arriving on a free transfer in 2020 after six years with Liverpool, which included winning the Premier League and the Champions League.
His contract expired last summer. He had been ruled out from January last season by a hamstring injury, but De Zerbi wanted to keep him as a player and a coaching assistant. Lallana was awarded a new one-year deal, enabling him to feature in the club’s first taste of European competition in the Europa League.
GO DEEPER
Adam Lallana's playing days are coming to an end - but Brighton and De Zerbi know his worth
“Last season, when I was injured, Roberto fought hard to keep me,” Lallana said. “I’d just had a big hamstring injury. That meant an awful lot to me, because at my age that doesn’t often happen. But the journey we have been on as a football club is remarkable.
“I was fortunate to be here this season during the European campaign. I’ve played quite a lot of football this season, maybe a little too much with all the injuries we’ve had. The squad has suffered a little bit, but I have loved every minute of it.”
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Lallana made two appearances in the Europa League, as Brighton reached the last 16, and he has played 24 times in the Premier League this season.
He plans to continue elsewhere an 18-year playing career which began with 235 appearances for Southampton between 2006 and 2014, including a loan spell at Bournemouth.
(Chloe Knott – Danehouse/Getty Images)
