Thursday 16 October 2014 22:39, UK
Former Fulham goalkeeper Neil Etheridge admits he is hoping to fix himself up with a new club as soon as possible.
Etheridge is a free agent after leaving Fulham this summer following eight years at Craven Cottage.
There has been no shortage of interest in the 24-year-old, but Etheridge has been frustrated after seeing several options come to nothing.
However, the former Chelsea youngster is determined to bounce back from the setbacks and kick-start his career.
“I spent the last two weeks training at Wolves and thought I had done enough to earn myself a chance, but in the end it wasn’t to be," said Etheridge . "But that’s football and you just have to pick yourself up and get on with it.
“Football can have a habit of kicking you when you’re down and I suppose I’ve been very fortunate in my career up to now. I think what makes you as a professional is how you react to the challenges that football presents.
"I had been at Fulham since I was 17 and so it was always going to be hard leaving, but the manner in which so many of us were released was a bitter pill to swallow."
Having been offered a contract at Championship side Charlton in the summer, Etheridge was given the dilemma of a trial with Premier League side Queens Park Rangers only for nothing to come from the trial at Loftus Road.
“It was tough because I feel a close affinity to Charlton - It was the first club I was ever loaned to and I know a lot of the people there, so it was a great place to be training and playing," added Etheridge.
"But I also have confidence in my ability to play in a Premier League set-up. So when I was offered a trial at QPR, I seized it.
“I knew they were changing their line-up of keepers and I had the belief that I could earn a contract.
"I felt that I had done my best, but I’ve discovered that sometimes it doesn't matter what you do.
"Other situations can conspire against you in the window - transfers fall through, players get injured, plans get changed. But that’s why football is such a tough career.”
