Former Premier League youngster who ditched football for a career in porn has passed away at the age of 34.
Oliver Spedding worked his way up the academy system at Premier League side Crystal Palace but decided to go into the porn industry after falling out of love with football when he served time in jail.
After his release, he continued to play football at non-league level.
On Saturday, Spedding’s former club Croydon released a statement, which read: “Oliver played for the club over a couple of spells and was a much-loved individual who always gave his utmost effort for the team.
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“Oliver will be hugely missed by everyone at the club and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time.”
The club also held a minute’s silence ahead of their match.
In previous interviews, Spedding admitted that he regretted his decision to ditch football for porn and revealed that he was being paid £150 per movie.
Last year, he told the Anything Goes with James English podcast: “When I was at Crystal Palace, if I'd have stayed with them, then I could have been earning a lot more playing football.
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“I used to fight as well, maybe that could have gone somewhere. I was good at both of those things, but being a porn star, I thought that would be just as good - but it's not as good as people think."
Croydon boss Liam Giles revealed that he held talks with Spedding regarding a potential return to football.
Writing on social media, Giles said: “Such heartbreaking news, Ollie was a warrior on the pitch and gave 100% every time he represented Croydon.
“We spoke a couple of weeks ago about him getting back into football. I hope you find your peace mate. Sleep Tight.”
Featured Image Credit: Anything Goes With James English/@damianoliverofficial/InstagramTopics: Premier League, Football, Crystal Palace