Stiliyan Petrov has told talkSPORT he was ‘hurt’ after being denied a contract at former club Aston Villa, having fought his way back to fitness following his cancer battle.

The former Villans and Bulgaria captain was forced to suspend his playing career in 2012 after being diagnosed with acute leukaemia, but three years later revealed he was eyeing a return to the game after beating the disease.

He was invited to pre-season training with Villa this summer and even joined the Championship club’s trip to Austria on the eve of the new campaign with the hope of proving his fitness.

But manager Roberto Di Matteo decided against giving him a deal, instead offering him a role within the club’s youth academy, which Petrov turned down.

Desperate to return to the game, the midfeidler insisted he isn’t bitter towards Villa and will now look to move on in his career.

“I don’t hold any grudges, I don’t have any bad feelings towards them but I won’t lie, I was very disappointed I wasn’t offered anything,” Petrov said in an EXCLUSIVE interview with talkSPORT host Jim White.

“Why I wasn’t offered, I don’t know. It wasn’t explained to me. They just told me I wouldn’t be a part of [the team].

“They offered me a job in the youth system, but I didn’t want that. I wanted to finish as a footballer.

“Why? Because my career was taken away from me by a disease, and I want to finish as a footballer again. I even didn’t want to get paid, I just wanted to finish as a footballer, to be able to retire on my terms.

“I completed a full pre-season. It was a lot of running and a lot of double sessions. It was a hell of a lot of running, but I completed every single one. It was good.

“Now, I’m trying to maintain my fitness.”

Petrov was mobbed by adoring Villa fans after a pre-season friendly this summer

Asked if he’s fallen out of love with Aston Villa or now feels unwelcome at the club, he replied: “No. I just didn’t want to be given anything by the club, I wanted to fight for it. I wanted to deserve to be back again.

“I’ve worked really hard. I came down from 139kilos to 90kilos to go back and complete the pre-season. It was a new chapter for me and I wanted to prove to everyone that I could do it.

“That’s what it was all about for me because you don’t lose that football ability, it’s all about getting the fitness and the stamina back.

“But I was told very early [that I wouldn’t get a contract]. I was free, and I could have done a longer pre-season than everybody else, but they didn’t give me the chance.

“They didn’t need to make that decision so early. Don’t get me wrong, I was being honest with myself, I knew I wouldn’t have played every single game in the Championship, but I think I can contribute and help the team in a different way.

“I think I deserved a little bit more time. If I had a bit more time I would have made it. I would have gotten fitter, stronger. I was close. I didn’t miss a training session and that was the important bit for me.

“I sat down with Roberto Di Matteo and thanked him for the opportunity to be part of it again. He wants to build his own team and I can understand that.

“I am disappointed and it really hurt me, but life goes on.”

Listen to a clip of Jim White’s interview with Stiliyan Petrov above!