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      Former Soccer AM star Tubes bravely opens up on his ‘life-ruining’ alcohol addiction after death of his dad

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      FORMER Soccer AM star Tubes has opened up about how golf saved his life after battling an alcohol addiction.Tubes was speaking on Beef’s Golf Club which is hosted by golf star Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston.
      Tubes was a fan favourite on the beloved Soccer AM showCredit: Instagram
      The beloved presenter spent 21 years working on the showCredit: Sky Sports
      He joined Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston for Beef’s Golf ClubCredit: youtube tubes and ange golf life
      Tubes, whose real name is Peter Dale, left Sky Sports this year after the much loved Soccer AM was cancelled.
      He was a cornerstone of the show from its early days and had spent a total of 21 years working for Sky.
      He now hosts Tubes and Ange Golf Life on his YouTube channel with celebrity guests including the likes of Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston, comedian Tom Davis and Arsenal star Declan Rice.
      And in his podcast alongside Beef, Tubes bravely opened up about how golf “saved his life” after suffering from a crippling alcohol dependency.
      READ MORE IN FOOTBALL
      Beef asked Tubes about how golfing had helped his mental health generally and Tubes replied: “It’s been amazing. [It’s helped] since I finally admitted that I was addicted to alcohol. Which I should have done years ago. I knew from about 16 that I didn’t have a normal relationship with alcohol.”
      He described how the “buzz” of alcohol “was the most uplifting thing,” before comparing the feeling to a kid waking up on Christmas morning, saying: “You know when you’re a young boy and you’re so excited about the buzz of Christmas. That Kronenbourg would go down and I’d be like ‘yeah’, and I just wanted that feeling the whole time.”
      Tubes said that initially, his need to drink was to cover up his shyness in social settings, but it took a darker turn as the years went on.
      He explained that as he got into his twenties his “whole life revolved around alcohol” and he would plan his drinking around work commitments.
      Most read in Football
      This summer, he played alongside Celtic manager Brendan Rogers on the channelCredit: youtube tubes and ange golf life
      He said: “I would look at the Chelsea fixture list and it wasn’t like ‘ah amazing, Chelsea Vs United’ it was like, brilliant, Sunday game, that means I can go out after Soccer AM all day Saturday, get p***ed, get up in the morning, first thing, go and do it all again on Sunday.”
      Tubes said that the turning point in his drinking came after he struggled to process the death of his father.
      He said: “When my Dad passed away, for a year after that I was quite good. I was still drinking but I was quite good. But then six months to a year later I had a real dip.”
      He said he suffered from PTSD in relation to his father’s passing which caused his drinking to “step up”.
      He said: “The drinking wasn’t fun anymore. My whole life became planned around drink. I’d be buying little vodkas just to have them with me at all times.
      “I was constantly chasing that buzz. It was a mess. I was so addicted to alcohol it was unbelievable. First thing I’d do in the morning was pick up a little bottle of vodka and bang. I’d call it a little leveller.
      “So when I finally admitted I was ruining other people’s lives I said one day ‘enough is enough.’ I’m not upsetting my mum anymore, she’s just lost her husband six months ago, it’s not fair.
      “I thought right I need to do stuff which allows me to see my friends and doesn’t involve going to the pub. So I was like golf! Golf!”
      He presents Golf Life alongside his brother AngeCredit: youtube tubes and ange golf life
      He said that his co-host and brother Ange was the biggest golfer he knew so he asked them if they could play together.
      Tubes said that while he initially found golf boring, playing after giving up alcohol allowed “something to click in his head.”
      He said the social aspect of golf was particularly important to allow him to break his dependency on the substance, saying: “Golf was just so good. I thought, I’ve got my friends, I don’t need to be drinking alcohol. I’m having such a laugh.”
      “There was an addiction there [with golf]. When I hit a good shot I got such a buzz and I was celebrating my shots like goals.
      “It really helped me stay off the alcohol ’cause once you get past six months and you transform your life it becomes a lot easier.”
      Read More on The Sun
      As well as helping him to break his drinking habit, golf ultimately gave Tubes the platform to go full time with YouTube after leaving Soccer AM.
      Tubes and Ange’s Golf Life has gone from strength to strength since its launch, and its weekly episodes feature interview with celebrities ranging from golf pros, to musicians, to professional footballers.
      Alcohol must knows

      NHS guidelines on drinking alcoholAccording to the NHS, regularly drinking more than 14 units of alcohol a week risks damaging your health.
      To keep health risks from alcohol to a low level if you drink most weeks:

      men and women are advised not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis 
      spread your drinking over 3 or more days if you regularly drink as much as 14 units a week
      if you want to cut down, try to have several drink-free days each week

      If you’re pregnant or think you could become pregnant, the safest approach is not to drink alcohol at all to keep risks to your baby to a minimum.
      You read more on the NHS website. More

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      Tottenham’s Postecoglou is sort of bloke you’d want to work for – just listen to how he talks on mental health and VAR

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      IF you’re a cynic, a Grinch or an Arsenal fan, there’s hope for you yet.Tottenham flew out of the blocks last season under Antonio Conte, unbeaten in seven matches and tipped as shock title contenders.
      Ange Postecoglou has been a breath of fresh air in the Premier LeagueCredit: Reuters
      Two years earlier, Spurs reached the Premier League summit in November when Jose Mourinho masterminded a classic 2-0 victory over Manchester City.
      So the apparently miraculous start being experienced under Ange Postecoglou is not unprecedented – and it could yet lead to a predictably Spursy shambles.
      But nobody was ever convinced that Conte or Mourinho were the right fit for Tottenham – least of all Conte and Mourinho, who both considered the Spurs job beneath them.
      What Spurs needed was a hungry manager grateful, with a chip on his shoulder, a point to prove, tactical acumen, emotional intelligence, an ability to improve players and a belief in attractive possession football.
      READ MORE ON POSTECOGLOU
      In Postecoglou, they have stumbled across just that man. And they’re top of the league.
      Yes, Gooners, by the slimmest possible margin ahead of Arsenal.
      And yes, they were lucky to defeat Liverpool and were 1-0 down at home to Sheffield United in injury-time.
      But not since Jurgen Klopp’s arrival at Anfield has a manager fresh to the Premier League looked such a perfect fit and become so swiftly recognised as a fine coach and a fair-dinkum bloke.
      Most read in Football
      Postecoglou has revitalised this Spurs squad despite losing talisman Harry KaneCredit: Reuters
      And let’s just remember how 2023 had been going for Spurs before Big Ange sauntered in.
      Their bankroller, Joe Lewis, had surrendered to the Feds after being charged with insider trading.
      Their director of football, Fabio Paratici, had been banned for 30 months, accused of false accounting at Juventus.
      Their manager, Conte, had committed verbal arson on his squad and left by extremely mutual consent.
      Their chairman, Daniel Levy, was a hate figure.
      Their team was a laughing stock and their star player, Harry Kane, wanted out.
      Yet Big Ange has somehow cleansed the place, simply by being Big Ange.
      This Australian is no song-and-dance man – he’s actually less convivial and matey than most of his nation’s leading sports people.
      He’s a serious individual, no sufferer of fools, not prone to great closeness with players.
      But listen to him on a range of subjects from mental health to VAR and he speaks with honesty, intelligence and originality.
      He sounds like the sort of bloke you’d want to work for. And that is certainly the feeling among Tottenham’s players.
      In the ‘meeja’, we can overestimate the importance of a manager’s press-conference performances but with Spurs fans having spent years hearing Conte and Mourinho publicly doing their club down, this matters.
      Still, how is it possible for a team which finished eighth last season to lose their 30-goal top scorer and thrive?
      Well the old chestnut about ‘no man being bigger than the club’ found an exception in Kane and Spurs.
      It’s not that the England captain was a selfish egomaniac, it’s just that tactically and temperamentally, a team can become too reliant on one individual.
      Without Kane, Spurs are a true team again, with players accepting, and enjoying, greater responsibility.
      The club recruited well this summer, even if it didn’t take a genius to work out that James Maddison was the very definition of a classic crowd-pleasing Tottenham playmaker.
      But keeper Guglielmo Vicario, a brilliant shot-stopper, and centre-half Micky van de Ven, blessed with rapid pace, have settled in ridiculously well.
      Other players have been transformed – Cristian Romero has cut out the recklessness which made him a liability and now looks every inch the world champion he is.
      Yves Bissouma, before a stupid sending-off in Saturday’s win at Luton, has been resembling the ambitious player who bossed midfields with Brighton, having seemed stifled by Conte’s tactical straitjacket.
      And Son Heung-Min is reborn at centre-forward and captain.
      Son is shining as Spurs’ captainCredit: EPA
      Son, like Postecoglou, had suffered from the snobbishness familiar to anyone arriving here from a nation not recognised as a major footballing power.
      Postecoglou readily admits his frustrations at establishing himself as an ‘outsider’ from a faraway colony where most people say ‘footie’ and mean a violent game played by men in vests threatening murder over possession of an egg.
      That chip on the shoulder can be a hugely positive motivational aid.
      Of course, nobody expects Spurs to win a first title in 63 years but a top-four finish, which was such a remote prospect last summer, is already looking entirely likely.
      And more importantly, supporters are actually enjoying going to watch their team for the first time in years.
      So, yes, be cynical, be miserable, be realistic enough to suspect that this might not last.
      But also recognise that Postecoglou is the most instantly effective Premier League managerial rookie we have seen in several years.

      WHY on Earth are England playing Australia at football this Friday?
      And why on Earth has such a meaningless fixture attracted a 90,000 full house at Wembley?
      Maybe it’s admirable that this nation has such an insatiable lust for any kind of live football – but shouldn’t we really have something better to do with our Friday nights?

      FOR years we have bashed Gareth Southgate for being overly loyal to a clutch of favourite players.
      Now one of those ‘favourites’, Raheem Sterling, has been banished from the England squad despite tearing it up for Chelsea – scoring once and effectively assisting the other three goals in a 4-1 thumping of Burnley.
      The England manager’s job always makes them thoroughly contrary in the end.
      Sterling is unlucky not to make the England squadCredit: Getty
      FULHAM fans all share the same memory of Dan Burn.
      He was a gangling young centre-half weirdly employed at full-back by madcap manager Felix Magath for a 4-1 thrashing at Stoke in 2014 which saw the west London club relegated after a 13-year stay in the top flight.
      So to see the genial Geordie giant excelling as a full-back for Newcastle in the Champions League, and scoring in a 4-1 drubbing of Paris St Germain, is extraordinary.
      Perhaps Magath was a misunderstood visionary genius after all.
      Dan Burn at left-back? Felix did it firstCredit: PA:Empics Sport
      WHEN an international break descends, the media demands at least one major Premier League club in serious crisis to keep the footballing news cycle turning.
      With Manchester United 1-0 down at home to Brentford heading into injury-time, having already suffered their worst start to a Premier League season, Erik ten Hag’s side were the perfect candidates.
      So for Scott McTominay to leap off the bench and score twice in added time is frankly very selfish.

      WITHOUT Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger, Rafa Benitez, Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel, some of us were extremely worried about where the Premier League’s next ‘handshake-gate’ flare-up was coming from.
      Thank heavens then for Aston Villa’s Unai Emery and Gary O’Neil of Wolves randomly refusing to shake hands after Sunday’s derby at Molineux.
      Now it is imperative that both men hold a significant grudge and allow a petty feud to run and run.

      AS the world becomes more environmentally friendly and tolerant, trust FIFA to buck the trend.
      The 2030 World Cup will be held in six nations on three continents, leaving a Yeti-sized carbon footprint, and the 2034 tournament is going to Saudi Arabia, with its appalling human-rights record.
      Is FIFA chief Gianni Infantino a mere Dr Evil lookalike, or is there more to it than that?
      Read More on The Sun
      Infantino’s decision will take the World Cup to six continentsCredit: Getty
      UNLIKE most high-profile ex-footballers, we rarely hear Kevin Keegan’s views on the game.
      And when Keegan opened his trap to tell us he has a problem with ‘lady footballers’ commenting on the men’s game, we were grateful for those long periods of silence. More

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      Inside David Beckham’s battle with OCD as footie legend throws open his wardrobe for new Netflix documentary

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      DAVID Beckham has opened up about his obsessive tendencies — and says he lines up clothes ready to wear a week in advance.The former England captain throws open his wardrobe in his new documentary, showing off outfits which have to be immaculately folded.
      David Beckham throws open his wardrobe for his new Netflix documentaryCredit: NETFLIX
      David confesses to staying up after everyone has gone to bed so he can tidy up the houseCredit: BackGrid
      David Beckham’s perfectly organised sock drawer is also shown in the documentaryCredit: netflix
      The 48-year-old, nicknamed Goldenballs in his illustrious playing career, also confesses to staying up after everyone has gone to bed so he can tidy up the house.
      The father of four discusses the reality of his obsessive compulsive disorder — including a spotless refrigerator — in the final part of his Netflix series, entitled Beckham.
      A throwback clip is shown of a teenage Beckham in an immaculate bedroom. The youngster says: “I hate an untidy room.”
      Fast-forward several decades and modern-day Beckham is seen in his equally well-kept surroundings, with all of his clothes meticulously arranged.
      READ MORE ON DAVID BECKHAM
      He explains: “It’s all quite organised — jackets, jean shirts, shirts and then it goes from jumpers, cardies to T-shirts, underwear socks and then suits.”
      Pointing out the rail underneath a window, he admits some of his tendencies have become more extreme.
      He says: “Those are my outfits for the rest of the week, I prep my week. It used to just be the night before.”
      Oscar-winning Beckham director Fisher Stevens asks him: “Is that a new obsession?”
      Most read in Football
      Becks, who has previously spoken about his OCD, shrugs: “Yeah, I’m quite organised.”
      He then visibly recoils after opening his trousers drawer and noticing the hangers are fractionally askew. He declares: “Someone’s been in here.”
      The former Manchester United midfielder, who famously stayed behind after training to practice his free-kicks, said previously: “I have got this obsessive compulsive ­disorder where I have to have everything in a straight line or everything has to be in pairs.”
      In the four-part documentary, he shows off the contents of his fridge, where bottles and jars are all ­perfectly laid out label-first.
      Beckham, married to Victoria and dad to Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper, is also seen frantically scrubbing the oven and wiping down the kitchen counter after cooking a roast dinner for the whole family.
      Becks says he lines up clothes ready to wear a week in advanceCredit: BackGrid
      The father of four discusses the reality of his obsessive compulsive disorderCredit: NETFLIX
      OCD is a mental health condition that can affect anyone at any age.
      Sufferers typically develop obsessive thoughts and compulsions — such as touching a lamppost a ­certain number of times — which can disrupt their daily life.
      It can also lead to body dysmorphia, compulsive skin picking and hoarding, according to charity Mind.
      The condition can be ­controlled and treatment usually involves psychological therapy or medication.
      It is not known why OCD occurs but it can be triggered by a major life event such as childbirth or bereavement.
      People who are naturally tidy are also more likely to develop it.
      Beckham is seen in the documentary giving fashion designer and former Spice Girl Victoria, 49, a telling-off for leaving the salt out.
      And he admits going round the house on his own tidying, and even cleaning smoke from candles, before he can head off to bed.
      In his kitchen, he says: “I clean [the house] so well, I’m not sure it’s actually appreciated so much by my wife, in all honesty.
      “The fact that when everyone’s in bed I then go around, clean the candles, turn the lights on to the right setting, make sure everywhere is tidy. I hate coming down in the morning and there’s cups and plates and, you know, bowls. It’s tiring going around every single candle cleaning it.
      “I clip the candle wax, I clean the glass, that’s my pet hate, the smoke around the inside of a candle . . . I know, it’s weird.”
      Read More on The Sun
      The Beckhams live in an eight-bedroom £25million mansion in west London, as well as owning a sprawling home in the Cotswolds.
      Both houses are featured in the series though it is not known if the couple also have a cleaner. More

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      in Soccer

      The football team that’s about more than winning

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      “WINNING is fantastic but it’s not our goal – it’s supporting each other on the pitch that counts.”It’s not exactly your typical manager’s pre-match huddle talk, but then South London’s Saving Souls FC aren’t your typical football team.
      Kerry Phillips founded Saving Souls FC to help bring people together
      While winning is a bonus, the real focus of the team, who are supported by National Lottery funding, is scoring victories over issues men face with their mental health.
      “I’m an Arsenal season ticket holder – I go by myself, home and away, and end up talking to so many different people,” says Kerry Phillips, Saving Souls’ founder, manager and “head of laundry”.
      “During lockdown, I realised that for me football is about more than 22 men kicking a ball.
      “It’s a point of connection with other people that nurtures my soul.” 
      Kerry, 36, from Catford, felt isolated during lockdown and reached out to friends on the phone.
      He sensed they were experiencing loneliness too but he couldn’t broach the subject. 
      “It was frustrating. It’s that ‘Men don’t talk about their feelings’ thing.”
      Kerry did some research and realised there was a problem. According to mental health charity Mind, 43 per cent of men regularly feel low but 28 per cent say embarrassment stops them seeking help.
      Most read in Football
      Men from minority ethnic groups are even less likely to access help than their white counterparts.
      “In 2017, I had therapy and that helped me understand my own mental health issues,” Kerry says.
      “As a child and young man I was overweight and lacked self-esteem, masking it with an outgoing persona.
      “Even after I lost 14st in my mid-twenties, I lacked confidence. Finally, turning 30, I faced up to my issues. That gave me tools for dealing with things.”
      National Lottery funding helps pay for the pitch hire
      Lockdown knocked his sense of self all over again. He wondered if there was something he could do to improve the mental health of men in his community.
      A couple of years earlier he’d organised a charity football match for his church – over-thirties versus under-thirties.
      “It was an intergenerational bonding session,” he says. “Was there a way of replicating that on a regular basis?”
      Kerry contacted the London Football Association and enquired about setting up a club with the aim of encouraging men to talk.
      Next, he rang Bellingham Leisure Centre, close to his home, and asked about hiring a pitch.
      Within weeks he had bagged a spot in the South London Grassroots Football League. Now all he needed was a team.
      The team are all about encouraging men to talk
      TALKING A GOOD GAME
      “I came up with the name Saving Souls FC and set up an Instagram account and promoted the first training session in 2021,” he says.
      “Sitting there on my own, I was nervous people wouldn’t turn up. But ten showed. Now Saving Souls has 88 members in its WhatsApp group.”
      Training takes place every other Friday evening, matches mostly on weekdays. And on the last Thursday of every month, Saving Souls holds a men’s forum.
      If people have specific problems they want to discuss, Kerry can signpost them to organisations like Citizens Advice and StepChange, the debt charity. 
      “We’re very diverse, with different religions and cultures,” he says. “Ages too – our oldest member is 58 and his son is the youngest at 18.
      “Friendships form – two members went into business together, while another felt strong enough to come off antidepressants through the boost playing gave him.”
      The team are achieving on the pitch too, winning the Grassroots League in 2022 with a goal difference of 137 and being named London FA Grassroots Project of the Year.
      Last year, Kerry successfully applied for National Lottery funding.
      “The FA gave us funding but I was spending my own money too,” he says.
      “We pay to hire the pitch, for example, but people might be struggling so sessions are free. National Lottery support was a lifesaver.”
      National Lottery players support health and wellbeing projects near you, like Saving Souls FC – the club helping people to improve their wellbeing and mental health through free weekly football matches.
      The National Lottery is also the proud sponsor of The Sun’s Who Cares Win Awards 2023, celebrating people, like Kerry, who put caring into everyday action.
      This season, Saving Souls FC have taken a break from the Grassroots League. “To give other teams a chance,” Kerry jokes.
      Instead, they’re organising matches with community groups, including teams of asylum seekers and Forces veterans.
      The club are welcoming women too, with free self-defence classes and plans for a women’s team.
      READ MORE SUN STORIES
      Saving souls through winning and, as importantly, cheerfully conceding goals: it’s a simple concept but it works.
      Back of the net, Kerry and team. More

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      in Boxing

      Boxer Prichard Colon’s mum shares health update on son as he celebrates birthday and receives gift from Daddy Yankee

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      PRICHARD COLON’S mother Nieves has shared an update on his health as he celebrated his birthday.Nieves shared a video presenting the former boxer with a cupcake and a candle.
      Prichard Colon’s mum shared an update on his condition on his birthdayCredit: TIKTOK fuerzacampeon_
      The boxer suffered a bleed on the brain during a fight in 2015Credit: Getty
      Colon, who turned 31, is seen smiling in response to his birthday cake, while he also received a signed boxing glove from rapper Daddy Yankee.
      Fans reacted to the video by offering up well wishes for his birthday and his recovery.
      The Puerto Rican fighter suffered a bleed on the brain during a 2015 fight with Terrel Williams.
      He was subjected to repeated blows to the back of his head during the bout, causing part of his skull to collapse.
      READ MORE IN BOXING
      The boxer left the ring but became dizzy and nauseous in his dressing room.
      He went into a coma for 221 days and has since been looked after at Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital in Orange Park, Florida.
      Nieves provides updates on her son’s health on social media and earlier this year posted a video titled “Prichard Colon-Melendez 5K run for the woods” which featured a video of Colon on a trail in a specially adapted mobility chair.
      It is unclear how much the former sportsman will recover but so far he is showing good progress.
      Most read in Boxing
      Former heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder broke down in tears while discussing Colon’s condition following his last win against Robert Helenius in October last year.
      He pointed to Colon as an example of the dangers boxers face when they entered the ring and showed sympathy for his fellow fighter. More

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      Eagle-eyed fans say ‘the mental battle is already LOST’ for KSI after spotting what he did in two Tommy Fury face-offs

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      EAGLE-EYED fans have claimed “the mental battle is already LOST” for KSI following his face-offs with Tommy Fury. The celebrity boxing stars clash in a massive Battle of Britain bout on October 14 in Manchester.
      KSI facing off with Tommy Fury ahead of their fightCredit: Reuters
      And before the DAZN pay-per-view showdown the two came head during a heated press conference and face-off interview.
      Both times KSI attempted to make Fury flinch by pretending to take a lunge at him and grabbing a bottle of Prime to dash his rival’s way.
      But after each attempt failed to faze the unbeaten boxer, fans spoke out to say KSI was already in a losing battle.
      One said: “KSI Has now FAILED at making Tommy Fury flinch TWICE‼️ The mental battle is already lost for this man.”
      READ MORE IN BOXING
      Another slammed: “KSI is embarrassing.”
      One asked: “He’s trying to make him flinch from 2 meters away, idk why he’s tried it twice.”
      KSI let out a menacing laugh as he grabbed a bottle of his popular Prime drink.
      But a confused Fury responded with: “What was that about? There’s no flinching out of me, mate.
      Most read in Boxing

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      “But don’t worry, I’ve got a rock solid metal (bottle) here and a lot more power behind my throw as well.
      “And there’s no flinching there, you tried to but you didn’t and I hope your feints are a lot better because that was s***.”
      KSI also left Fury bemused after making a remark about the size of his manhood, having accepted the grudge match as a huge betting underdog.
      He said: “Have you not seen the size of my balls, bro? I’ve got f basketballs down there.”
      Fury replied: “I don’t want to. Why does him and Jake Paul keep coming out with this?
      “Jake Paul said he was going to do such and such on fight week, and now you’re talking about balls. What is it with you guys?”
      The celebrity stars clash in a massive bout on October 14 in ManchesterCredit: Reuters More

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      Tough guy Ten Hag’s not a school headmaster… if his approach doesn’t lead Man Utd to more wins then it isn’t working

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      WE know he’s a tough guy, who’s not afraid to make the tough calls, Erik ten Hag.That much is brutally apparent.
      Erik ten Hag already has two big questions to answer early in the seasonCredit: EPA
      Contrast Ten Hag’s treatment of Jadon Sancho with the more understanding approach to Richarlison shown by Spurs manager Ange PostecoglouCredit: Rex
      Here’s the guy who bombed out Cristiano Ronaldo, stripped Harry Maguire of the captaincy, released David de Gea and has now frozen out Jadon Sancho.
      Big balls, this fella. Proper hardline. An alpha male. A ‘come on punk, make my day’ kind of a boss.
      Cue a standing ovation from the cheap seats, where they’re convinced Premier League footballers are all filthy-rich prima donnas who need to be brought down a peg.
      Ten Hag says there was ‘no good culture’ when he arrived at Manchester United, after the benign reign of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and that supply-teacher interlude under Ralf Rangnick.
      READ MORE TOP STORIES
      And most managerial appointments are a reaction against the predecessor.
      Who knows, when Ten Hag goes, maybe United will replace him with Peter Kay or one of Britain’s other leading light entertainers.
      But with United in the bottom half of the table after five poor performances out of five, two questions arise.
      Firstly, can Ten Hag’s ‘my way or the highway’ routine actually work at an elite club in the 21st century?
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      And secondly, while he has proved adept at tearing things apart, is the Dutchman actually showing any signs of building anything positive?
      Consider Ten Hag’s approach to  Sancho, against that of Tottenham’s Ange Postecoglou towards Richarlison.
      The known circumstances are very different — Sancho is accused of lacking professionalism, while Richarlison has admitted he is struggling on a human level and seeking help with his mental health.
      But the contrast in approach between the two managers still feels relevant.
      Postecoglou spoke with intelligence and decency about Richarlison’s struggles on Friday.
      The following day, the Brazilian headed an equaliser to spark an  improbable injury-time comeback win against Sheffield United.
      Ten Hag publicly stated that Sancho had trained poorly when he was left out of the squad for the defeat at Arsenal.
      And when Sancho effectively accused his boss of lying and making him a ‘scapegoat’, he refused to  apologise and has been frozen out of first-team training as a result.
      Ten Hag has frozen Jadon Sancho out after a controversial disputeCredit: Getty
      Consider that Antony  is currently on leave of absence to address accusations of assaulting women, with Mason Greenwood on loan at Getafe after allegations of attempted rape, coercion and assault were dropped.
      So it’s not as if Sancho is the baddest man at Carrington. And it’s not as if Ten Hag didn’t need wingers.
      Indeed, he sent out a team in a midfield diamond, without wide forwards, against Brighton on Saturday and United took a 3-1 hiding.
      The subject of footballers’ mental health is often turned on and off like a tap.
      Dele Alli opens up bravely about the impact of an extremely difficult upbringing, and everyone salutes his bravery, promising to remember that footballers are humans and cut them some slack.
      Then Sancho gets called out and he’s widely accused of being an ill-disciplined brat.
      It would be interesting to hear Sancho’s full story but if he gave it, he would doubtless be fined two weeks’ wages.
      Remember that Sancho was given an extended break last season to work on ‘physical and mental issues’.
      Maybe a genuine tough guy doesn’t always need to make a show of being the tough guy. Footballers respect managers who are authentic.
      Also remember that Sancho was bold enough to leave his comfort zone by moving to Borussia Dortmund as a 17-year-old and tore it up in the Bundesliga — a forerunner to Jude Bellingham.
      Paint Sancho as a wrong ‘un all you like but the truth is almost certainly more complex. He’s probably a bundle of contradictions like most of us.
      And he’s also a £73million player who operates in a position where United are lacking.
      Ten Hag is a football manager, not the headmaster of a reform school.
      If his approach doesn’t lead to United winning more football matches, then it isn’t working.
      And maybe a genuine tough guy doesn’t always need to make such a show of being the tough guy.
      Footballers respect managers who are authentic. Are United’s players respectful of Ten Hag’s methods?
      Well it’s not as if Ten Hag’s ‘toughness’ is being reflected on the pitch.Brighton waltzed through a static defence several times as they chalked up their fourth consecutive  victory over United.
      This season, United haven’t looked like a team with an identity and a plan.
      Ten Hag built a wonderful side at Ajax but there are few signs of anything similar at Old Trafford.
      Most of the club’s problems are not Ten Hag’s fault, especially as the Glazer family’s alleged ‘sale process’ drags on tortuously.
      But United still spent just under £170million this summer only to have gone backwards.
      It was widely expected that United would bid for Harry Kane — who faces them in the Champions League with Bayern Munich tomorrow.But maybe that would have been too obvious — too much like Easy Street for Ten Hag.
      Instead, this tough guy walks the hard yards.
      He must hope that his players are willing to follow him.
      Lord’s player
      SAY anything  negative about the Premier League’s wealthiest clubs and you are  invariably accused of jealousy.
      Yet nobody secretly wishes they support one of the Manchester clubs or Chelsea or Newcastle.
      No, God’s chosen people are Brighton fans — the street cred of the hard-times back story, the glorious rise, the ridiculously successful transfer policy, the beautiful football and the frequent mullerings of the elite.
      As they make their European debut against AEK Athens on Thursday, we wish Seagulls supporters all the very best.
      The lucky, lucky bleeders.
      Out to lunch
      COLIN MURPHY, who has died  aged 79, was a successful lower-league manager, most notably at Lincoln City.
      He was an obsessive football watcher, renowned for having the most high-mileage vehicle in the game.
      Yet Murphy is best remembered for his  magnificently bewildering programme notes.
      Murphy once wrote: “You, me, we, all of us have been forced to breakfast on travesty, lunch on objection and insult, dine on inflicted pressure.“High tea we daren’t sit still long enough to take and, by supper, we were still expected to have been victorious.”
      Doubtless followed by: “Glenn Cockerill remains sidelined by a hamstring injury and I’d like to welcome the players, officials and supporters of Port Vale to Sincil Bank for today’s  Division Three fixture.”
      Skewered
      WHILE waiting to interview Gareth Southgate in a Hampden concourse last week, we perused the menu on offer to Scottish football fans.
      Top of the list a kebab pie.
      So on behalf of the civilised world, thanks to Jude Bellingham for putting these barbarians in their place.
      READ MORE SUN STORIES
      A step too VAR
      CHAMPIONSHIP clubs will shun the introduction of VAR because an overwhelming majority realise that the system has made Premier League football worse, not better.
      Good on them for recognising technology does not always represent ‘progress’. More

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      in Soccer

      I was the ‘new Maradona’, had a boot deal as a kid & starred on TV shows but it all got too much – now I’m a cab driver

      by

      SONNY PIKE was once dubbed the “new Diego Maradona” but now works as a taxi driver.Pike, 40, was once Britain’s biggest football prodigy, but things all got too much and he quit the game having never made a professional appearance.
      Sonny Pike was set for stardom but never made it as a professionalCredit: YouTube
      He is now a taxi driver and football coachCredit: Sonny Pike
      His story began when he was a schoolboy, first playing at local side Enfield FC with a dream of emulating his idol Paul Gascoigne.
      It wasn’t long before he started competing against older children for at school and for his Sunday League team, catching the attention of the press having netted over 100 goals in one season.
      Pike’s first television appearance came on 1990s news show London Tonight before he was then interviewed on hit programmes like Fantasy Football League and The Big Breakfast.
      He had the world’s media in a frenzy as they hyped him up as the “next Maradona or George Best”.
      READ MORE IN FOOTBALL
      It alerted the likes of Ajax, who had developed a reputation for nurturing some of the best talents in the game.
      The Dutch side invited him to a trial in Amsterdam with the then 12-year-old being followed by Blue Peter cameras while in Holland.
      He set about dazzling coaches with his technique and skill despite Pike focusing his future on becoming a Premier League hero one day.
      The fanfare grew on his return from Ajax with his new-found celebrity status.
      Most read in Football
      FREE BETS – BEST BETTING OFFERS AND BONUSES NEW CUSTOMERS
      Pike was a guest on Fantasy Football LeagueCredit: YouTube
      He was soon being snapped up by huge companies in sponsorship deals with the likes of McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and Mizuno as all tried to get a piece of the action.
      Pike explained to Flashscore: “I was on the pitch for Coca Cola Cup finals doing kick-ups before the games, I was doing McDonald’s adverts, I was getting Paul Smith making me suits.
      “I started to get awards from Sky Sports at this point in time obviously the Premier League and Sky Sports were just kicking off.
      “I was sponsored by Mizuno and was doing things with [Gianfranco] Zola and all these guys but in the early to mid-90s.
      “Only one or two players out of a Premier League team would have their own boot deal. People were saying, ‘Who’s this Sonny kid, he’s everywhere. He’s a little kid, he’s got deals, he’s going in Hello magazine.’
      “It was rubbing some professionals up the wrong way – but I was just a kid getting all this attention.”
      As quickly as fame arrived, it soon began to disappear and Pike’s life began to spiral downwards.
      Aged 14, the pressure got too much and it was reported that his legs were insured for £1million.
      It led to Pike being on the receiving end of disgusting abuse from jealous parents that wanted their kids to injure him.
      He told SunSport: “Because I had long hair they used to say, ‘he’s only a girl, break his legs.’
      “Not just that, off the pitch and at school I got different treatment that didn’t help me either.
      “Once I remember a guy came up to me on the street to tell me he put a bet on me to play for England. It was scary.”
      Pike is reluctant to blame his father for his downfall but one huge moment led to his career stalling.
      He was signed as a youth player by Leyton Orient and his dad Mickey pushed his son to appear in a documentary called ‘Coaching and Poaching’ presented by Greg Dyke.
      Pike was stunned to hear the documentary, instead of looking at his life as a youngster, actually exposed that Chelsea were tapping him up, with the young star unaware he had broken any rules.
      Pike fell out of love with the beautiful game as a teenagerCredit: Sonny Pike
      The FA banned him and his relationship with his father became further strained when he began to believe Mickey was making money off his name.
      His parents also divorced and Pike was left without a club due to his ban.
      Opened up on the dark time, he said: “After watching that documentary, I came out of the pub and I stood in the middle of the main road in Edmonton, actually on a roundabout.
      “There’s cars just whizzing around me and I just felt that’s what my head was getting like. ‘This is too much, enough of this now.’
      “Then a month later my dad turns up, I’d not seen him for a few weeks. As soon as he comes up towards me, the first thing I’m gonna say to him is, for the very first time, ‘I don’t want to do this no more.’
      “He told me that he had some more work for me, some more TV stuff and I’m literally about to walk up to and say the complete opposite.
      “He said, ‘If you don’t do it, you ain’t got a dad.’”
      Eventually, Pike was handed a chance by Crystal Palace but made the news again when his father did an interview with a newspaper claiming how big offers had ripped the family apart.
      On the pitch, he could no longer cope, revealing: “I pretty-much had a mental breakdown on the pitch. I came on for 15 minutes, I was given the opportunity and I just walked off.
      “The pressure of me going on, it was just too much. I looked at the coach and just walked off.
      “I broke down and I knew it was all over from then.”
      Pike then spent two years at non-league Stevenage until he was 18-years-old on a YTS scheme but his heart was no longer in football.
      Battles with depression continued but the wonderkid managed to turn his life around with the pressures of expectation and media attention gone.
      Pike started a new career working as a cab driver in London while he also helps young and upcoming footballers not fall into the trap of stardom.
      He does coaching sessions but offers support for off-field matters as he delivers talks to parents and players about protecting mental health and the dangers that lie ahead for future pros.
      Pike also wrote a book called “The Greatest Footballer That Never Was” further explaining his story.
      On his life within football now, he says: “I’m talking to their parents and then trying to get the player through that process because obviously I can relate to it a lot – the attention and the pressure they get – I’ve been there. 
      “I get a lot of other kids come in… a boy was sent down from up north and had a professional contract given to him but he didn’t want to sign it.
      Read More on The Sun
      “His mum and dad sent him down to me, just to talk to me. I get a lot of that.”
      Pike adds: “Instead of grabbing all the sponsorship deals and this sort of stuff, getting excited over a few pairs of boots or an advert or whatever else, think long-term and concentrate on and promote the love of football more.”
      Sonny Pike is now a football coachCredit: GettyYou’re Not AloneEVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide.

      It doesn’t discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
      It’s the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
      And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
      Yet it’s rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
      That is why The Sun launched the You’re Not Alone campaign.
      The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
      Let’s all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others… You’re Not Alone.
      If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:

      CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
      Heads Together, www.headstogether.org.uk
      Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
      Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
      Samaritans, www.samaritans.org, 116 123
      Movember, www.uk.movember.com
      Anxiety UK www.anxietyuk.org.uk, 03444 775 774 Monday-Friday 9.30am-10pm, Saturday/Sunday 10am-8pm More