A Bournemouth fan has paid tribute to Cherries star Junior Stanislas, 33, who has announced his retirement from football.
Naom Lewis, who runs a Junior Stanislas fan account on Instagram said he was sad to see his hero end his playing career.
He said: “He was a consistent player helping us get promotion to the Premier League and it is sad to see him leave football due to injuries, however I am happy that he wants to go into management, and I hope he does well.
“He’s genuinely one of the nicest guys I have ever met and has always supported local businesses since he’s lived here.”
Stanislas enjoyed a 15-year career, nine of which spent at AFC Bournemouth. During this spell he made 179 appearances scoring 37 goals for the Cherries.
The Englishman started his career at West ham after growing up in Eltham. He played for England at youth level both for the u19s and u21 alongside James Tomkins who currently plays for Crystal Palace in the Premier League.
After leaving West Ham in the summer of 2011, he spent three years at Burnley, playing 101 games, helping them get promotion in the 13/14 season under Sean Dyche before moving to AFC Bournemouth on a free transfer.
Life at the Cherries started well gaining promotion to the Premier League in his first season. He then helped them stay in the division playing 21 games, scoring three times.
However, Stanislas struggled with injuries and ended up missing 101 games through injury over his nine years with the club.
In 2019, knee surgery left him side-lined for 28 games spread over two seasons.
He went on to make 35 Championship appearances in the 2020-21 season and get promoted in 2022 despite being a bit part player.
In his last two season he made a combined 11 appearances before leaving Bournemouth this summer.
Stanislas now plans to go into management having got his A and B coaching licence.
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