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On the surface, perhaps top professional footballers seem unlikely victims of mental health issues. They are young, rich, successful people living a dream lifestyle, worshipped by millions of kids around the world.

The tragic death of German international goalkeeper Robert Enke in 2009 opened some eyes to the issue. Enke, widely tipped to be a fixture in the German national team for years to come, had been suffering from depression for six years. The illness first took grip in 2003 during his unhappy time with Barcelona.

In the midst of his battle with the illness, tragedy struck when his daughter was born with a disabling illness and died in 2006. He struggled to come to terms with the loss. On the pitch, however, his performances went from strength to strength. Very few people were aware of the full extent of his torment.

This highlights a key point. People suffering from mental health issues such as depression can often be very good at masking the symptoms.

On 10th November 2009, after telling his wife he was going to work, Enke instead drove to a railway line and stepped out in front of an express train. He was just 32.

The tragic news of Gary Speed’s death, reportedly from suicide, further highlights the issue. Speed died less than 24 hours after appearing on BBC’s Football Focus programme. Seemingly happy on his last television appearance, nobody watching could have known he had any intention of taking his own life.

Footballers are human beings. Their lives of luxury and huge pay cheques do not make them immune to the same issues other human beings face.

Depression, on average, affects 1 in 10 people and chronic depression affects 1 in 20.

In recent years, much has been done to combat the stigma attached to mental health in the United Kingdom and across the world. However, unfortunately the stigma still remains.

In the past week, former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore has been outspoken about his own personal battle with depression via his Twitter account. While many footballers and journalists spoke out in support of Collymore, and rightly so, a minority reacted in a more confrontational way, accusing Collymore of “attention-seeking” and using the illness to “make excuses” for his past behaviour. This reaction is counter-productive if we are to expect other footballers and other people in general to seek help for their problems.

Although mental health is a difficult area, which has no “easy fix”, it is an important subject to speak about. Heightened awareness can potentially save lives.

Statistically, there are likely to be many others involved in the sport right now who are suffering from mental health issues – and suffering in silence.

The stigma attached to mental illness needs to be removed to prevent further tragedies and those with the courage to speak out about the issues, like Stan Collymore, need to be commended for their bravery.

R.I.P. Gary Speed.

- Jason Mitchell

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Whether it’s Richard ‘Monkey Arm’ Keys, Andy ‘Can you Tuck This In’ Gray or perhaps Robbie Savage or Stan Collymore, we want you to tell us who really gets on your nerves. Maybe it’s Adrian Chiles, John Motson anyone from Soccer AM. The list is quite literally, almost endless.

We want you to name the person who has you reaching for your radio or TV remote control with the sole aim of flinging it to the floor.

Remember you can pick whomever you wish. Perhaps there is a lesser known local presenter who really deserves to be slapped across the face with a rake or maybe one of the usual suspects has got you so angry you are considering stalking that well known pundit/presenter and then shouting very loudly when they least suspect it, BOO!

We want your nominations so that we can then draw up a list of the most frequently named people onto a poll that we can then unleash on the entire world. So in the words of Delia Smith “Let’s be having you”.

So simply name and shame the offending person in the comment section below and our trained chimp will then collate the worst offenders who will then be placed in a poll.

Good Luck!

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Let’s take a closer look at (Stan Collymore’s) thoughts:

The Premier League is considered by many to be the best league in the world but I think drastic reform is needed to keep it at the pinnacle.

In some of the finest Schools of Journalism, they teach that a good way to indicate you are about to waste a few minutes of your reader’s time, is to make the opening sentence nonsensical, thus hinting to the reader to go and do something else. Here Stan delivers, pointing out that the success of the Premier League (which lies in its top-to-bottom competitiveness) could only be maintained by ditching any competition outside of who wins the thing. It’s the equivalent of Terry Leahy advocating Tesco stop pushing the food element so much.

Turning now to the hub of Stan’s argument:

And there would be no promotion or relegation which would allow those teams to grow.

No it would not. After all, with no threat of relegation, why should any chairman or team outside the top three make any effort to win the league, or even to improve? Why should fans care or go anymore? If a team is 10 points clear at the top by November, what interest is there for the rest of the season?

It would make a pleasant change from watching some of the smaller clubs in the Premier League in recent times like Reading, Wigan and Bolton.

Perhaps. So why write in the same column, “So there is very much a place for Stoke City in the top-flight and I have enormous respect for their wily manager Pulis.” Having never won a league or FA Cup, it seems unlikely Stoke would be there as one of the, “biggest and most successful sides in modern history.”

Fans around the world want to see the huge games – not clashes involving clubs like Barnsley, Watford or Hull.

A bit like arguing, that because the Sun is the biggest selling newspaper, people only want to have that one paper in their newsagents. And that we should close down the Mirror. Hang on a sec actually…

The Football League would still function if you are a Wigan or a Notts County or a smaller club.

Well Notts County, as the oldest club in the country, would probably stake a claim to being one of the clubs who have ”contributed the most over the last 100 years.”
In addition, the point is untrue. The only thing that keeps all four divisions going, is the hope for even the smallest teams, that one day, they may mix it with the big boys. Stymie that hope, and there is nothing left. Fact.

There is little precedent in other sports for the system of meritocracy if you look at the NFL.

Ah, the NFL. Well Stan, take a look at the global tv audience for Liverpool vs Manchester United yesterday, and compare that to the American Football at Wembley. The Premier League wins by a distance – so we shall take no lessons from the NFL thanks.

No further questions your honour. And Stan, we’ll still never forget that goal against Atletico Madrid. Even after all this. (The Spoiler)

And there you have it. I really don’t understand how an ex footballer can appear to know nothing of the game of which he used to earn a very decent living. Rarely does an article by the former Southend man not come up with some pearl of wisdom that makes you do a double take and wonder if you had in fact read what you thought you had or if someone had slipped some kind of pill into your coffee rendering everything you read worthless.

This is the former Liverpool man who at any given opportunity sticks the knife into the club, the man who has on previous occasion claimed that ‘fans’ know nothing about the game and only ‘ex-pros’ can comment meaningfully on the game. He really does make Jan Moir, the crazy Daily Mail bigot who laid into the recently deceased Stephen Gately, look like a calm and measured journalist! Actually I take that back, they are both as bad as each other! Neither know what they are talking about and both have managed to fool publications into paying them money to come up with mindless bile!

Rant Over!

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The former Manchester United captain took aim at Collymore as he defended his controversial decision to make former Old Trafford team-mate David Beckham his man of the match in the midweek England game.
Bruce hit out at Collymore, who works for TalkSport, after the former Liverpool striker rubbished his decision to single out Beckham for praise following his cameo appearance as a substitute during the 3-0 defeat of Belarus at Wembley.

Bruce also told one of Collymore’s TalkSport colleagues that he would not grant him a post-match interview, despite the fact that the station has paid for full commentary rights for the Liverpool game, with the coverage led by the former Aston Villa player.
Bruce said. “It’s incredible – I have been known such a carry-on, I have to tell you. When I was in the stadium he came on to the pitch and, let’s be fair, for 50 minutes it was dull, boring and uninteresting.
“That’s the way I looked at it, but when David Beckham came onto the scene the whole stadium in unison rises to him and I thought blooming heck, wow, fantastic, now Dave what have you got?
“For me, for the 35-40 minutes he lit up Wembley with his attitude and that is why Fabio Capello keeps picking him for England to go into the squad to do something like that for him. Maybe he can’t do it for 90 minutes, however for me he had an impact.
“That is the way I called it, then I saw Mr Powell’s article calling it grotesque in the Mail and then I flicked over the page and his correspondent gave Peter Crouch man of the match nine, and David Beckham eight.
“Yet he was caning me for some grotesque insult to English football and then you get that other idiot, Stan Collymore, who I had to switch off on the radio on the way home. I had to say to the driver please turn him off that. It is totally embarrassing. He is one person that… don’t get me tied on that one.” (Daily Telegraph)

As a lifelong Liverpool fan I take no pleasure in admitting that I am fully 100% behind Steve Bruce on this one. Let’s forget about why he chose David Beckham as man of the match on Wednesday, personally I would have opted for Crouch but the LA Galaxy man wasn’t far behind, but his words on Stan Collymore are just spot on.

Whenever I am sadistic enough to read his ‘articles’ or stupid enough to turn on a radio at the inopportune time and I read/hear what that sad idiot has to say I am constantly pondering how he is given a platform by anyone to spout his idiotic bile. He has of course been taking badly aimed pot shots at Liverpool these past few weeks, and made a fool of himself in attacking our friends at The Spoiler, and now this.

Stan I would advise that you crawl back under the stone you emerged from after your disgusting woman battering and think long and hard about just how loathed a person you have become. So low has your star fallen that I fully expect you to be on a reality show of some description before too long.

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ANOTHER Sunday and another load of steaming crap served up by Stan Wallymore.

He tells it straight every Monday, say the Daily Mirror. Yeah – straight from his arse.

For the third week running the former-Bradford striker has had a pop at Liverpool in his column – and this time they didn’t even play a game!

Doesn’t stop Stan though, he’s on a mission now, the bit’s between his teeth, it’s him v Liverpool and he’s going to win.

One thing that’s consistent about his column is its inconsistency. This week Liverpool’s two-man team has gone up to three:

There are only three title-worthy players in the side in the form of Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres and Pepe Reina

And yet just LAST WEEK Liverpool were a two-man team. What next week – up to four or back down to two? Place your bets ladies and gentlemen.

And the most laughable part of his latest dose of drivel? That’ll be the following line:

Now my spies at my old club are telling me that the next most influential player, Javier Mascherano, is unhappy and may well be looking for pastures new come the summer or even sooner if the price is right.

Crap rumours always have the word spies in them. But your spies, Stan? Who might they be then? Bearing in mind how many people Wallymore annoyed during his spell at Anfield – by refusing to move to a house in Liverpool, refusing to train, refusing to play for the reserves and so on – I don’t mind betting he doesn’t have too many friends on the inside of Liverpool Fc.

And add to the mix that he left the club 12 years ago – so there’s likely to be very few people still at Anfield from Collymore’s playing days.

Sniff, sniff, what’s that? Bullshit…or Stan Collymore’s breath? You know what? I can’t tell the difference.

Do us all a favour, Wallymore, aim your poison pen bollocks at another club.

Oh, and if you are going to have another pop next week, try and dream up something original. The “Mascherano’s off again” tale has been on the internet all weekend. (Well Red)

I have to say that when I read this piece I found my self involuntarily nodding to myself in agreement with every single point, this excellent Liverpool Blog, CLICK HERE to visit, echoes what I and the fans I have spoken to about Mr. Collymore have been thinking and indeed stating for ages.

The guy is a joke. After his ridiculous attack on our friends at The Spoiler, CLICK HERE to see that laughable episode. Stan Collymore has gone from bad to worse in his attempts to be taken seriously after continuously spouting opinions and statements with little or no follow through or basis in reality.

It should also be noted that the former ‘Dogging enthusiast’ and ‘Woman batterer’ knows no allegiance when it comes to his footballing pearls of wisdom, and by pearls of wisdom I mean ‘utter shite’, he does tend to offend many sets of fans in equal measure but you would have thought he would show at least a modicum of respect for the biggest football club who ever employed him.

Get a Life Stan!

YNWA

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In his latest interview with talkSPORT, we’re delighted to see Paul Gascoigne back to his usual chirpy self. At times we needed our Geordie translator to interpret, but his stories of Stan Collymore nudity and playful fire exstinguisher fights with Liam Gallagher are well worth hearing. (The Spoiler)

CLICK HERE to see the Interview, and believe me, it’s well worth watching for the Collymore episode alone!

It’s good to see Gazza back and equally good to see that he is almost lucid and coherent but one does wonder what will happen next with the Geordie loose cannon. Hopefully he will continue to stay clear of his demons and who knows perhaps in five or six years he will be managing at some level rather than back in the papers for all the wrong reasons. The sound you can hear is that of all of us in COS Towers touching wood!

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Stan Collymore has started a one man mission to convince the world that Nicklas Bendtner is going to become a top quality striker.

Anyone who tuned in to talkSPORT on Saturday evening will have heard the former Liverpool striker condemn the nasty Arsenal fans for a barracking that never actually took place. Indeed The Spoiler’s booing expert watched the game in eager anticipation of some top quality jeering and was left disappointed as the majority of supporters instead got behind the Dane after every miss, chanting “Super Nicklas Bendtner”.

The controversial pundit wasn’t prepared to end his campaign there though and today named the striker “Hero of the Weekend” in his Daily Mirror column, as well as launching another attack on Gunners fans for their treatment of him and general poor support.

Our booing correspondent thought that Bendtner was one of Arsenal’s best players in the first-half on Saturday but no matter how effective some of his build-up play was, nobody who misses numerous gilt-edged chances can rationally be labelled the player of the weekend. (The Spoiler)

To read The Spoiler’s hilarious response to Stan Collymore CLICK HERE!

Now i am against the pointless booing of an individual error here and there and i also admit that Bendtner has got better these past two months. But Stan got it horribly wrong. I heard no booing of Nicklas, certainly not in that game, and to name him the hero of the weekend just belies belief. In fact if Mr. Collymore bothered to notice the fans at the Emirates are actually giving the likes of Eboue and Bendtner a great deal of applause and support and this has in turn appeared to improve both players performances on the pitch. In many ways the abuse that both player have recieved in the past has in many ways acted as a wake up call to them and was never as bad as the media portrayed it to be in the first place.