FORMER Real Madrid and Holland ace Wesley Sneijder has revealed how alcohol problems cost him two marriages.
Sneijder was touted to be the next big thing when he joined the Spanish giants from Ajax for £18.3million back in 2007.
Wesley Sneijder’s partying cost his his marriage to Ramona Streekstra
But his good games in his 52 appearances came in fits and spurts and he failed to set the Bernabeu alight.
After just two seasons in Spain he was shipped off to Inter Milan – and now Sneijder has revealed how his life off the pitch affected his performances on it.
Writing in his autobiography the 36-year-old also told how “a bottle of vodka became my best friend”.
He explained: “I was not aware that moving to Real also meant I moved into the nightlife of Madrid.
Sneijder did marry another woman, Yolanthe, who he confessed all his problems to
“I got sucked into it. I was young, I was enjoying success and I was loving all the attention.
“That is where it must have gone wrong for me later in my life.
“I didn’t do drugs, but I did do booze and had a rock-‘n-roll lifestyle as one of the stars of Real Madrid. All the things I was up to were all covered up.
“Even when I was absolutely drunk, rolling on the streets and spending thousands of euros paying for all the drinks in every place.
“I was weak and did not show any resistance. I let people treat me like a star.
“There was always a team-mate with me at Real Madrid – and usually that was Guti.”
His wife at the time, Ramona Streekstra, left with their son Jessy and later filed for divorce.
Sneijder then married model and TV host Yolanthe Cabau in July 2010 but they announced their decision to split up in March 2019.
After four seasons with Inter in Italy, Sneijder went on to play for Galatasaray, Nice and Qatari side Al-Gharafa.
He retired last year and is now back in his homeland working with FC Utrecht.
Wesley Sneijder failed to reach his potential at Real MadridCredit: AP:Associated Press
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
