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Jonjo Shelvey: ‘I’m not in Dubai for money… I don’t want my kids growing up in England’

Jonjo Shelvey reveals in an interview this week ‘I’m not in Dubai for money… I don’t want my kids growing up in England’.

With BBC Sport‘s Ciaran Kelly, the former England international said he ended up playing in the UAE’s third tier with Arabian Falcons due to a combination of personal and professional factors.

After an unsuccessful trial at Hull City, and suffering a hamstring injury, Shelvey was approached by his childhood friend, Arabian Falcons manager Harry Agombar, to join the Dubai-based club for a “fresh start.”

At 33, Shelvey, a father of three, wanted to enjoy football and spend time with family in a safer environment, expressing concerns about rising crime in London, including phone and jewellery thefts.

He clarified that his move to the UAE wasn’t for money, as the standard wage is only £2,000 a month, far less than his previous earnings at clubs like Newcastle United and Liverpool, or even his brother’s hotel job in London.

Despite his love for Newcastle, where he spent seven years and felt immense fan support, he chose to relocate to Dubai, and is currently pursuing his Uefa A Licence.

He combines coaching with playing, aiming for promotion with the Falcons, while acknowledging his physical limitations as he nears the end of his playing career.

Jonjo recently went viral with footage emerging of him missing a penalty in a match against Al Fath getting millions of views online. Despite the miss in front of just 75 spectators, Shelvey dismissed criticism, stating he “could not care less.”

“It doesn’t bother me,” he said on the video of his spot kick miss. “I’ve since seen a few things like ‘he’s gone there for money’. I’m thinking ‘what money? There’s no money in the UAE Second Division League’.

“The ballpark of the standard wage here is £2,000-a-month for a footballer. In terms of what I’ve earned throughout my career, that’s nothing.

“My brother earns more working in a hotel in London, so it was never about coming here for the money.

“I’ve had my time. I’m happy and content. I’m just at the stage now where I want to enjoy football. It’s about waking up, enjoying what I do and spending time with my family.

“If I’m honest, I don’t want my children growing up in England any more. We’re very lucky that we lived in a nice part of the UK but where I’m from, originally, you can’t have nice things in my opinion.

“I’d never wear a watch in London any more. You can’t have your phone out in London, in my view.

“I’m not massive on reading politics. just see some of the things that go on.

“I see people getting arrested for tweeting and, then, all of the flags and ‘taking back the country’.

“I’m not going to sit here and comment on things like that because I’m not clever enough to, and I’ll get myself into trouble if I carry on, but I just feel that the UK isn’t what it was 10 to 15 years ago.”

A change of topic sees Shelvey talk Newcastle, with the 33-year-old saying the north east was “the only place there he would want to live”.

“There’s this debate about whether Newcastle are able to attract the big players compared to the Manchester clubs and the London clubs but, until you go there, you don’t understand what it does to you,” he said.

“There are loads of things to do. I don’t care what anyone says. If players are going to listen to this, it’s a no-brainer to go there and play football.

“You will not find love at a football club like I found at Newcastle, with how they take to their players and how much they back you.”

He reflected on his time at Newcastle United, and the ‘massive’ goal he scored against Leeds United three and a half years ago.

“If I had not scored that, the club would have gone down!” he said. “I’m joking. Looking back at it, you don’t realise how big a goal it was and, to be fair, the keeper [Illan Meslier] chucked one in for us. I scuffed the life out of it.

“But I’ve only got good things to say about my time at Newcastle. I loved it. Even when I first got the call about going there, I drove 12 hours from Swansea because of the traffic. I just wanted to get up there, get my medical done and get signed.

“I had experienced playing against Newcastle at St James’ Park and you get a real buzz, but you never understand how big the club is until you are there.”

He still holds affection for Newcastle and coach Eddie Howe but hesitates to contact Howe, despite being urged to, saying he wants to earn coaching opportunities on merit while pursuing his Uefa A Licence. He coaches in the evenings, trains in the mornings, and believes some teammates could play in English League One or Two.

Shelvey acknowledges his physical limitations, fearing a serious injury might end his career, but he continues playing while feeling fit.

But Shelvey recognises that his body is “not the same as it used to be”.

“When you get older, every time you go on the training pitch, you think, ‘is this going to be my last session?'” he said. “If I got a bad injury now, I would probably call it a day.

“I wouldn’t want to go through the process of rehabbing. There is a fear in that sense but while I still feel relatively good, strong and fit, I’ll just keep going.”

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