I was hurt by the way Everton let me go after 12 years - it took me a while to go back

Phil Jagielka was ‘hurt’ when leaving Everton.

The former England international played 385 times across 12 seasons at Goodison Park. However, he was not pleased with how he was told his contract would not be renewed at the end of the 2018/19 season.

Despite a lack of game time, his winner against Arsenal at Goodison Park rolled back the years for supporters securing a 1-0 in Everton’s pursuit of European football in early April. Jagielka only started the game due to Michael Keane’s illness picked up in the warm-up.

Jagielka moved to his boyhood club Sheffield United that summer, before stints at Stoke City and Derby County. He eventually hung his boots up aged 41 last summer.

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“Everton was the hardest one to take. Me and Bainsey’s (Leighton Baines’) contracts were up at the end of the season and there was rumours on whether we were going to get an extra year.” He told The Ben Foster Podcast.

“This is my twelfth season, club captain. The conversation and they were quite open about it. It comes to the last game of the season, me and Bainsey were both on the bench. I remember Marco (Silva) turning around and putting me on.

“So I’ve whispered to Bainsey, ‘it looks like I’m not staying then.’ It was a nice reception and stuff but none of my family were there for the day.

“He covered his bases then the season finished. You go home and you're having conversations speaking to the chief executive and saying 'look, we're thinking about trying to sign Kurt Zouma on a permanent transfer.'

“Never signed Kurt. There’s a release list, I