Ex-Liverpool winger leaves semi-pro English club less than a month after joining to make shock move to Bulgarian side instead

The 'Railway Workers' announced the deal on their Facebook account earlier today. 

Ibe had signed with Sittingbourne, currently playing in eighth tier of the English football pyramid, on October 31. He said he hoped the deal would help him "rediscover his love of football", after a switch to the Swedish second division with Umea fell through in the summer due to work permit issues. The ex-Bournemouth star has been open about his struggles with depression in the past few years. 

Ibe's move to Bulgaria is adds another chapter to a nomadic career that started with immense promise. He first caught the attention of the football public as an academy star with Wycombe Wanderers. In 2011, he joined Liverpool's youth setup and was widely tipped to be a future regular in the England team. During his tenure at Anfield, he made 58 appearances, scoring four goals and logging seven assists. 

A £15m transfer to Bournemouth in 2016 was supposed to accelerate his development, however an inconsistent four-year spell on the south coast ended in his release in 2020. Ibe made 92 appearances for the Cherries in all competitions. 

A year on the books at Derby County resulted in just one league appearance, as Ibe revealed he was suffering from depression. The club and player agreed to terminate his contract by mutual consent. 

After a few months in Turkiye with Adanaspor, Ibe would spend the next few years bouncing around non-league outfits, making appearances for Ebbsfleet United, Hayes & Yeading United, Hungerford Town and Sittingbourne. 

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Lokomotiv Sofia currently sit in 11th place in Bulgaria's First League. Originally founded in 1929, the club was wound up in 2015 due to insolvency, with a phoenix club founded in the resulting year. The original club won four league titles and four Bulgarian cups, and is historically considered one of the country's biggest clubs. 

A club statement announcing Ibe's arrival read: "After a few difficult seasons, Jordan is ready to revive his career, and we all believe that this will happen at Lokomotiv.

"The management of Lokomotiv wishes Jordon Ibe much health, happiness and success with the red and black jersey."

Due to a lengthy winter break, Lokomotiv have already played half of their 30 league fixtures this season. The club has just four league games left this year, before play pauses until the first week in February, giving Ibe little time to get games under his belt if he's not deemed fit enough to start immediately. The Railway Workers' season continues with an away trip to Cherno More on November 22, with a home game against Arfa on November 28.