Jansen is offered Carlisle chance

Jansen has not played competitive football for almost three years

Carlisle United manager Greg Abbott has offered former striker Matt Jansen the chance to return to Brunton Park.

Jansen, 31, reportedly left Blackburn Rovers this week after failing to re-launch his career at the club.

"I said to him that 'I am at the end of the phone if you ever need to pick it up and consider Carlisle'," Abbott told BBC Radio Cumbria.

"[He] will always be welcome to come and train with us and that situation remains the same."

Carlisle-born Jansen began his career with the Cumbrians after coming through the youth system at Brunton Park.

He made 42 appearances, scoring 10 times, before turning down a move to Manchester United in favour of joining Crystal Palace for �1m in 1998.

I have got a great relationship with Matty and when he came here before he trained really well

Carlisle boss Greg Abbott

A �4.1m move to Blackburn Rovers followed 12 months later, scoring on his debut against Tottenham Hotspur in January 1999.

His good form led to an England call-up for the friendly game against Paraguay on 17 April 2002. However, a stomach illness forced him to miss the game and deny him a place in the World Cup 2002 squad.

Jansen's career declined after a serious motorcycle accident in Rome during the summer of 2002 in which he suffered a brain haemorrhage and fell into a coma.

After returning to the game in 2003, Jansen had spells with Coventry City and Bolton Wanderers.

He returned to Brunton Park in the summer of 2007 to train with his home-town club in a bid to re-launch his career.

"I have got a great relationship with Matty and when he came here before he trained really well," Abbott said. "But he decided that it wasn't what he wanted to do at the time.

"If he decided he wanted to train with us and can get his appetite and determination back, then you never know where it could lead."

Jansen, who has not played since April 2006, started training with Blackburn in November in a bid to return to football after rediscovering his hunger to play.