Former Brighton midfield star mysteriously cancels contract at PSV Eindhoven and retires from football

Propper, 30, brought his career to an abrupt end and said it was a relief to stop playing immediately and said no longer feels happy in the football world.

Propper has had a difficult season in the Dutch top flight and has not always been a starter for PSV coach Roger Schmidt. Partly due to injuries, he played only nine league matches this season, in which he scored once and provided one assist.

Propper, who still had 18 months left on his contract said, ''I made the decision before Christmas and that feels like a relief. This is how I know it's the right choice."

he added: "During the period that I was abroad, I noticed that I slowly lost the pleasure of football.

“I found it extremely difficult to muster the discipline necessary to perform optimally and to let my life completely be determined by the busy football schedule.

“The coronavirus period and the lack of visits from family and friends did me no good then either. ”

“I hoped that with my return to the Netherlands, the fun in football would return.

“Unfortunately, that has not turned out to be so easy, partly because I don't feel comfortable in football culture.

“Still, I have adapted to it for a long time and sometimes closed it off. I don't want that anymore and that's why I'm done with it now."

The Netherlands international has had 11 seasons as a professional. He broke through at Vitesse and he made the switch to PSV in 2015.

Propper won the league title with PSV in 2016 and made the move to Albion in 2017. He was a popular and elegant midfielder for Brighton and a key member of the team that helped establish themselves in the Premier League after promotion from the Championship.

Head coach Graham Potter previously praised Propper for his technical ability and tactical awareness in midfield.

In four seasons, the midfielder played 107 games in the Premier League but hardly featured in the 2020-21 due to injuries and fitness issues.

Propper featured in 316 league matches in his career. He scored 34 times and provided 38 assists. He played 19 times for the Dutch national team, in which he scored three goals.

Propper has not stated what he plans to do in the future as yet.