Top 10 Footballers Who Smoked
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Top 10 Footballers Who Smoked
The lowdown on ten players who didn't confine themselves to just lighting up on the pitch.
Bobby Charlton
England's record goalscorer puffed away on a cigarette at half-time in the World Cup final. His brother Jack and striker Jimmy Greaves were also smokers while 1966 captain Bobby Moore fronted an ad campaign to drop in at your local pub.And England still wonder why they haven't won the tournament since. Someone tell Wayne Rooney to smuggle his Bensons along with his flip-flops past Don Fabio pronto.
Johan Cruyff
The Dutch master was a 20-a-day man during his playing career and continued to light up on the Barca bench until he had a double heart bypass in 1991. After his surgery Cruyff literally kicked the habit for a TV anti-smoking campaign where he juggled a pack of ciggies with trademark skill. Check out his, erm, box control here.Rumors that he boycotted the World Cup in 1978 because Argentina coach César Luis Menotti wouldn't share his ciggies have yet to be denied.
Socrates
A star performer in Brazil's brilliant 1982 side, the bearded ace puffed his way through two packs a day and continued to light up after quitting the game. Now a medical doctor and member of the Workers' Party he suggested in a masters thesis that football should be reduced to nine a side to improve skill levels. In other words, so Brazil would win all the time.
Gianluca Vialli
If you grow up in a 60-room 15th century castle you feel like you can get away with pretty much anything. Vialli famously lit up on the bench after being substituted during Italia '90 and kept smoking away when he managed Chelsea at the start of decade. Quite how he got past the ID checks wearing his schoolboy jumper is anybody's guess.
Robert Prosinecki
Talented beyond doubt, he played for Barcelona and Real Madrid while concealing a habit rumored to be 50-a-day at its peak. Starred at France '98 alongside another smoker Slaven Bilic, he cut to 20 a day when he joined Portsmouth in 2001.Was all set to form a smoking superteam with Paul Merson before Harry Redknapp perhaps wisely sold him after one season.
Preben Elkjaer
The great Dane sparkled during Mexico '86 and remains an icon in Verona where he played a key role in their only Scudetto title. Amazed coaches with his fitness levels while continuing to smoke at half-time and according to Danish legend, smoked during a penalty shoot out, flicking his fag away just before burying his spot kick home.Now prefers restrained fare as a Champions League pundit on Danish TV.
Zinedine Zidane
After making a fool of Ronaldinho during Germany '06 the hero in Les Bleus' 1998 World Cup glory prepared for France's semi-final with Portugal by puffing on a ciggie. Perhaps the nicotine had caused amnesia as Zizou had fronted an anti-smoking campaign four years earlier. Merde!
Osvaldo Ardiles
Inspired by their chain-smoking manager César Luis Menotti, Ardiles was a solid 40-a-day man during the Argentineans' home triumph in 1978. At least that's according to his former Spurs team-mate Glenn Hoddle, who revealed this nugget when defending Paul Gascoigne's smoking habit prior to France '98."It didn't bother Ossie and it doesn't bother me," said the then coach.
Something did bother Hod as he soon dropped Gazza from the World Cup squad and England were home before the postcards.
Trifon Ivanov
Bulgaria's hairy defender loved a Davidoff before kick-off, half-time and, er, anytime at all. The dead ball specialist wasn't the only member of Bulgaria's squad who enjoyed the good life as the team were spotted in public drinking and smoking in their run to the semi-finals at USA '94.After being beaten by Italy in the semi-finals the Bulgarians lost interest and got trashed off the pitch before doing the same on it against Sweden in the third place play off.
Fabien Barthez
Les Blues' victorious squad from 1998 boasted at least three smokers with Zidane, Franck Lebeouf and Fabien Barthez between the sticks.Enraged Southampton's then-manager Gordon Strachan by leaving several cigarette butts stubbed out in the health conscious manager's office after he was taken off injured while playing for Manchester United in 2003. After making the discovery Strachan quipped the balded one must have been taken off for a smoker's cough!
Barthez was recently quoted as charging €70 a minute for his goalkeeping coaching services which should pay for his habit quite nicely. Cough, cough...
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eh wheres berbatov?
oh yea he aint great
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Rooney and Gallas too!