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England legend Paul Gascoigne has opened up on his endless battle to stay sober, revealing that he is staying in his agent's spare room and is back attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
Gascoigne, 56, has publicly battled mental health problems and alcohol addiction since concluding his storied career in football.
Viewed as one of the greatest English players of all time, Gascoigne made 57 appearances for his country and starred for a host of teams including Newcastle, Tottenham, Lazio and Rangers.
But now, as revealed during an interview with "High Performance, 'Gazza' lives with his manager Katie Davies on a residential street in Poole on the south coast of England.
'I used to be a happy drunk. I ain't anymore. I'm a sad drunk. I don't go out and drink, I drink indoors,' the former midfielder said.
England legend Paul Gascoigne, 56, has opened up on his never-ending battle to stay sober
Viewed as one of the best English players of all time, Gascoigne made 57 caps for his country
Gascoigne told High Performance: 'I used to be a happy drunk. I ain't anymore. I'm a sad drunk'
'People know Paul Gascoigne but Gazza, no one knows. Even me sometimes. I've spent a lot of years being down, when I did my ligaments and then my kneecap, I missed four years of football. I would've got 100 caps (for England).
'I try not to get down because the world's already down enough. And when I'm really down, that's when I pick up a drink to cheer myself up.
'I don't think I let any managers down, or the players or the fans you know. If there was anyone I let down, it was myself. But more the drinking side of it, when I finished playing.'
Gascoigne, who was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002 before calling time on his career in 2004, has struggled with his battle for sobriety since retirement.
He went to rehab for a seventh time for alcohol addiction in 2014, attending a £6,000-a-month clinic in Southampton, and has even paid £20,000 to have anti-boozing pellets put into his stomach in a bid to stop drinking. He admitted during a 2021 interview that he will 'always be an alcoholic'.
Gascoigne's battle with alcohol has also led to a series of arrests for drunk and disorderly and drink-driving offences. The former superstar admits he barely watches football anymore because of how much he misses it.
'If I want to make it a bad day, (all I need to do) is) go down the pub. If I want it to be a good day, get my flying rod out and go fishing,' he added.
'It's not the drinking, it's the afterwards. Looking at my phone after and seeing 30 messages or missed calls, I know I'm in trouble. But I've been alright. Last year
