Leon Osman rose through the ranks at Everton and went on to make 433 first-team appearances.
As a boyhood Blue, he lived the dream. Representing the club he loves on the biggest stage.
After a loan spell at Carlisle United, the midfielder went from strength to strength and was rewarded with a taste of senior action towards the end of the 2002/03 season. It was no more than he deserved.
Just a couple of years earlier, Osman's playing career was left hanging by a thread. His dreams of becoming a professional footballer were almost shattered in 2001 when he suffered a serious knee injury.
That injury kept him out of action for almost a year, but he has bounced back in style. A loan spell at Derby County came before he made his first start for Everton against Wolves in May 2004.
His first goal came three minutes into the game at Molineux, although David Moyes’ side would go on to lose 2-1. But from there that was it for Osman.
The following season he cemented himself as a first-team regular. He played a key role in helping the Blues secure Champions League football a season later.
Osman struck a significant haul of goals over his Everton career, but the best was undeniably his stunning strike in the UEFA Cup against Larissa back in 2007. His finish capped off a superb flowing move involving Leighton Baines, Tim Cahill and Steven Pienaar.
The now 41-year-old played in the Blues’ 2-1 FA Cup final defeat to Chelsea before his maiden Merseyside derby goal arrived in October 2012. Luis Suarez took centre stage as Liverpool and Everton shared the points after a pulsating 90 minutes in the 219th Merseyside derby.
The forward was controversially denied an injury-time winner after Everton had fought back from 2-0 down, but it was an earlier goal celebration which is likely to prove the game's enduring image. Having played a key role in Liverpool's opener with a shot that deflected in off Baines, Suarez ran to celebrate with a swallow dive in front of Moyes - a reference to claims by the Everton manager before the game that he went down too easily.
Osman made his first England appearance in a 4-2 friendly defeat in Sweden in November 2012, turning in an impressive performance and earning praise from manager Roy Hodgson afterwards.
However, from 2014 onwards, Osman found regular starts hard to come by. And during his final season with the club, he was reduced to just 16 appearances, mainly as a substitute.
Osman’s time at Everton came to an end when his contract expired in June 2016. However, his exit came in less than ideal circumstances.
Osman was sent a text telling him he would no longer be a Blues player despite previously having assurances from Roberto Martinez that he would be offered a new deal at the club following the expiration of his contract in the summer.
“By a text from a friend,” he revealed to talkSPORT back in November 2016. “He phoned up to say he couldn’t believe what happened. I then checked the website and it said I’d been released. That was how I found out.”
Micky Quinn, on talkSPORT at the time, was appalled by Everton’s actions, saying: “The service you gave that football club…it’s disgusting.”
Before he added in a separate interview to The Sportsman: "The discussion was to be had, Roberto told me that I'd still be at the club the following season but then he lost his job before the end of the season.
"I seemed to fall in the gap of the uncertainty over who the new manager was going to be. It's disappointing, these things happen.
"I would have liked to have had a nice match at Goodison to say my goodbyes, myself and Tony Hibbert who was in the same situation. We just didn't happen to get that.”
While there was a certain amount of disappointment for Osman, he still loves Everton. And speaking to the ECHO recently, the former midfielder admitted he now has mixed feelings on his exit.
“Look, it was what it was. I’m not someone who looks back and wants to talk negatively about Everton,” he said. “Do I wish my departure would have happened differently? Yes, of course in a few different ways.
“But that is football and when you are valuable you are on top of the world and when your time comes to an end you are moved on. That is always going to be the case in football. There is no point in getting bitter or frustrated about it.
“I loved my time at Everton. So much so that I still want to be at every single game now and I still want to be involved and thoroughly enjoy it.
“Life is life and I love what I am doing next. I am getting to go and talk about Everton on Amazon Prime Video tonight. I am pleased with what I have managed to find for myself.”
Looking back now, Osman feels he was simply allowed to fall through the cracks following the sacking of Martinez and the appointment of Ronald Koeman.
“That was definitely the case,” he says when asked if he just fell through the cracks. “Roberto had said there was something and we discussed it and then Ronald Koeman came in and wanted to go a different way.
“That is part of football. It happens. I can’t say that Ronald Koeman was wrong because he was the new manager of a club and wanted to bring different types of players and different styles of players.
“It is what it is. That is football and life goes on and football goes on. Regardless, we still love our teams and to support our teams home and away.”
Following his release from Everton, Osman opted to hang up his boots and since carved out a successful career as a TV pundit. He regularly features on Amazon Prime, Match of the Day and Premier League Productions.
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