Bournemouth appoint former player Matt Ritchie as technical director after retirement

[p]The 36-year-old will rejoin his ‌former club in a new ‌role after League One side [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/reading/EmlVDpVP/"]Reading[/a] confirmed he had called time ‌on his playing career, ⁠bringing his ‌two-year contract to an early end.[/p][p][b]“[a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/bournemouth/OtpNdwrc/"]AFC ​Bournemouth[/a] has always meant a huge amount to ​me, so to return in this capacity is incredibly special,”[/b] ⁠[a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ritchie-matt/WMTsaFTi/"]Ritchie[/a] said ​in a statement.[/p][p]“I’ve spent a long time preparing for what’s next for me after playing, learning ‌from experienced people across the game and developing my understanding of the technical and strategic side of football.“It’s a fantastic opportunity and can’t wait to begin working with the staff, players and ownership group ‌as we continue building for ​the future."[/p][embed guid="a3b42240-ff0c-4f13-96dd-583ceda2b794" url="https://x.com/afcbournemouth/status/2063969794936697074" social-type="twitter" /][p]Ritchie made 142 appearances ‌for Bournemouth, scoring 31 goals. The Scotland international also played for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/newcastle-utd/p6ahwuwJ/"]Newcastle United[/a] and was part of Champions League ⁠squads.[/p]