EPL Dele Alli

[Yellowmania]

Very emotive interview with him and the absolute hell he endured as a kid. Great respect to him for the honest and frank disclosures and the effect on his mental health.
Fingers crossed he stays in a good place now.

 

[MJB]

Probably a reminder for all of us when we’re publicly critiquing (to put it politely) young male and female footballers. It’s generally an odd thing to be subjected young men and women to; and not least those who are dealing with difficulties that are not known publicly.

 

[Left Wing Cross]

Our own psychologist, Gary Bloom, has spoken up on the use of sleeping pills in football

Sleeping pill addiction 'widespread' in football

Sleeping pill addiction is "widespread" among football players, former Oxford United club psychotherapist Gary Bloom tells BBC World Service.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Colin B]

Our own psychologist, Gary Bloom, has spoken up on the use of sleeping pills in football

Sleeping pill addiction 'widespread' in football

Sleeping pill addiction is "widespread" among football players, former Oxford United club psychotherapist Gary Bloom tells BBC World Service.

www.bbc.co.uk

Ex psychotherapist. He left sometime after KR left the club.

 

[Left Wing Cross]

Ex psychotherapist. He left sometime after KR left the club.

Oops. Forgot.

 

[RyanioBirdio]

Good to see that there’s finally a conversation starting to be had about the use of ‘short burst’ stimulants in football. Clubs have been effectively doping players by giving them a massive caffeine rush before games, then pumping them full of sleeping pills to bring them back down again straight after, for years.

 

[Left Wing Cross]

Good to see that there’s finally a conversation starting to be had about the use of ‘short burst’ stimulants in football. Clubs have been effectively doping players by giving them a massive caffeine rush before games, then pumping them full of sleeping pills to bring them back down again straight after, for years.

I wonder if this strategy has any correlation with the number of identified heart conditions?

 

[RyanioBirdio]

I wonder if this strategy has any correlation with the number of identified heart conditions?

There was an interview on the radio with a sports scientist in 2020 when Liverpool had just won the PL. He said that they had come to the end of their ‘caffeine doping cycle’ as they could only do it for a set period of time before it put players in danger of heart problems, and that he expected them to drop right off the following season. Which they did - they barely made top four. Yes they had a few injury issues but their overall intensity and style of play was visibly off.

Let’s get back to ashtrays and half time oranges, I say.

 

[Mojofilter]

Something about Bloom and this article in the bbc rubs me up the wrong way. It feels like cynically capitalising on a bigger story to get airtime - particularly here where he is in effect talking about his clients, a quite select and small client group.

If I was an oxford player who had had a sleeping pill addiction and told the therapist I'd be pretty angry with him.

 

[Left Wing Cross]

There was an interview on the radio with a sports scientist in 2020 when Liverpool had just won the PL. He said that they had come to the end of their ‘caffeine doping cycle’ as they could only do it for a set period of time before it put players in danger of heart problems, and that he expected them to drop right off the following season. Which they did - they barely made top four. Yes they had a few injury issues but their overall intensity and style of play was visibly off.

Let’s get back to ashtrays and half time oranges, I say.

I believe they drank lots of tea at half time during the era of ciggies and oranges, so perhaps caffeine doping has been widespread for decades