Former Liverpool and England footballer Danny Murphy has opened up about his use of cocaine after retiring from the sport.

The 47-year-old enjoyed a successful career with the Reds, winning the FA Cup and UEFA Cup, before playing for Fulham and Tottenham.

The midfielder retired in 2013, having made a total of 417 Premier League appearances, and said he then struggled living without football.

After losing the “adrenaline” of playing the sport at the highest level, he told the Ben Heath Podcast that problems became “huge” and he turned to drugs for “escapism”.

“How do I deal with problems when I haven’t got football? Because problems when you play football aren’t problems,” he said, referring to issues such as bills and relationships.

“You’ve got the joy and adrenaline to keep you forward-thinking and energetic,” he said.

The ex-pro added: “When you’ve got issues, without football these issues become huge, they’re like mountains.

“When you were playing they were fine, because you had finances coming in, you also had support from everyone and anyone.”

He said that while he did not become an alcoholic, he had a bad year with drugs.

“I had a spell on cocaine and smoking some weed, and the drink… I could live without it,” he said.

He said he was addicted to cocaine “for a while”, adding: “I got to the point where I didn’t think I could do things without it, which was nonsense, of course I could.”

Murphy now works as a regular pundit for BBC Sport, including on highlights show Match Of The Day.

He said his media work had helped but did not give him the same “high” as playing professional football.

Read more:
Thierry Henry ‘cried almost daily’ early in pandemic
Jackie Chan shares health update after concerns raised

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free

Murphy also said he was “amazed” by the number of ex-players who have reached out to him with their own struggles after retiring from the game.

He said therapy helped him to overcome his addiction and believes his experiences had made him a better son, father and partner.

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

“Therapy was good… you’ve got to be prepared to go deep and not everyone is, because you’ve got to be in for an emotional rollercoaster in therapy,” he said.

Murphy added that after “a year of being in a world of pain”, he now realised how lucky he was not to have suffered for longer after speaking with others who had also struggled with drug addictions.

Related posts:

Snow, sleet and freezing temperatures to hit UK as pub beer gardens reopen in England Is there a risk from COVID variants when US and EU travellers enter the UK without quarantine? French fishermen threaten to block exports to UK in run-up to Christmas as tensions rise over fishing rights Two men taken to hospital after being attacked by two ‘aggressive’ dogs on the loose ‘You are not alone’: Boris Johnson pens open letter to children of Ukraine Hospital health worker arrested on suspicion of poisoning infant who died Revealed: 12 steps you can take to reduce your risk of getting dementia Bringing cake to office as harmful as passive smoking, UK food watchdog says Baby donkey theft from farm in Hampshire leaves owner ‘devastated’ ‘Bubbly’ mum-of-four and man found dead in Huddersfield are named by police Prince Harry in legal row with Home Office over his security Murder arrests after ‘devoted son’, 26, dies in ‘incident’