Arsenal legends Seaman, Merson and Groves open up about their battles with mental health

we've got the Academy kid who ended up playing for Arsenal for more than a decade George Graham's first signing and the xqp our goalkeeper who went on to be in England and Arsenal great obviously in the late 80s early 90s you played through a golden era for the club you won a lot you celebrated a lot but we know now when probably knew at the time that certain individuals yourself included Paul we're having a really tough time so that's the point of this really - to maybe say things that weren't said at the time and look behind the trophies look behind the smiles and see how people really felt I suppose you joined in 1990 yeah your first impression I just was about you I love being at the club it was better than I expected the togetherness that the lights out it was brilliant you know and they just went yeah coming you know I'm not joined in and I now start for now and stuff and that's what we always used to do we always used to do together you know so I met the Uni stronger and we just wanted to win we wanted to win stuff all right we did do it the most attractive way but like Harry says I know who cares we win we wouldn't roll out like 7th period I'll me ask you now you come in T total you've never had a drink before you think drink they don't drink so how did it feel for you like we all went out and then you start coming out how do you feel you had to come out very easy left very weak wheels it's us the peas peer pressure yeah yes you felt like well I got a minute I have got to go I mean I loved it don't get me wrong I you know I sit here now my life's completely different when I was 20 21 22 23 I loved it I loved it it was the dream you know it was going out you look like Brad Pitt gee I mean even though you never look like Brad Pitt your plan for the best team in the country you come on okay and when you playing for us of course I mean that was fact and it was and I loved it it's completely different now but you only know that kind of situations as you get older but course it's all masks I mean you've got to put on a smiley face and behind the scenes you know you just lost all my money you know there's got to be a big story breaking in the paper next week about you if a girl that you as with three weeks before that who sold this story all that stuff is on you and you ain't got nobody to talk to not a soul because if you start saying someone let me doors maybe seizes on me back or I've got fun I promise ya you don't sorry sharing a weakness to anybody why is that because you get ripped you get ripped apart one you one you won't get easy would you rip I mean I use the cool I mean I'm nicknamed him social because a lot of time he sound gone out I'm gay I'm fishing gee I mean that's what I call him socially I never socials we've any but never socializes with anybody and and and you know they was taking the mick really it was and you look back now and you think well why do you have to come out do you mean you know cuz I always used to go the other way I used to see a psychiatrist and I used to I wait to go I used to lay on the couch and go why can't I be like Alan Smith please why can't I be like you mean normal what say he lived his life like I wanted to live my life and I couldn't not because of everything that was going on he'd finished training always been happily married always or always seemed content you know I was never contended never know any term Merce was you didn't have to get up and the paper every Sunday morning and go if you had a you know psychological problem or you struggle many that was seen as being a weakness you would not say that to anybody in your group you say yeah yeah if you talk to somebody but like then reading notes if I came to we're going on the Tuesday and I said like twelve o'clock we gotta get ready go not me a funny must I've been a bit of stuff that I should we do like whatever fit you could kind of paper so I'm banging trouble you've got that I'm not being funny you half give I five because I'm talking like twenty odd years ago now but you would you'd find it hilarious you'd be shouting across the room roses in trouble newspapers tomorrow divine you'd run to the paper shop in the morning to get him to get your ball so II think India Sandy's not me you go through the whole of our team Alan Smith and Nigel Winterburn are the only two still married everybody else is divorce divorce rates are high yeah retired football yes and you three are examples of that we're not being too personal yeah why do you think it is why is that selfishly I was selfish my own little bubble in them days as well put you were getting married at 2021 know yourself are you gonna know someone else I think George won George wanted you to settle down what do you know it'd be another exactly and and that they sort of wanted that when you know you've made a mistake here and you are gonna be nervous all over the front pages yeah and you know that's come in for your mental health what is that like oh I mean I I've wanted to kill myself enough times through it I mean you can't explain because you can't talk to anybody you want to try and find a place where you can go where nobody's gonna see you yeah sometimes with people waiting outside the door and stuff I used to people living outside my house like living outside constantly pulling up and it's just waiting and waiting and you just didn't have anybody to talk to plus then you're telling yourself what a bad person I am and then I pull up at work and I literally go you know I'll add tells you again we all right and it'd be laughing a joke if no one ever looked at me and went oh you're not well no one no one did so when you spoke a few weeks ago about feeling suicidal compared to maybe 94 when you first saw happier public the two reactions how different were they this one the one recently at the just over a year ago was worse because I knew 94 I didn't really know I just thought it was the norm I just thought this is this is the way I'm built I know I deserve better now Jermaine well before what was your fault yeah so don't you so all that grief and hassle that you get you think when it's self-inflicted why should I yeah get any sympathy whatever so you beat yourself up yourself up is that why you felt so bad the second time because she knew you'd run through all that yeah I don't know because I still fall down he's opening over the last year he's like I know I was ill and I wasn't a bad person I wasn't bad I was just just an ill person who it was a nice when he when he when he whatever whatever doing doing or gamble yeah different but personally yeah over the last year I I deserve my life now before I used to think I deserve mean I've got a great job yeah I used to hate I said it before I've only just come to terms with people coming up to me and going I want a player you were what a player and I'll go thank you before I used to go no no no way no I'm not a nice person you should be talking nicely about me like that no I just come to terms now I'll go thank you but I feel worthy now I didn't feel worthy what about for you Perry I mean I don't know just pretend it Paul's the only one with of course we do you were tied at 28 but got injured at 27 28 and then retired like that took me two years and it comes to 30 but when you get to 30 and then you don't you guys think you're indestructible being pretty flippant I got to say I sort of half retired semi retired I know I was I was just went and got for a up for a year I just when I got drunk for you but when you look back you just think well was you trying to you know like mask something I just fall out of having a great time and then what do you think now I think it was a bit of masking going on don't be more I did have a great time but not necessary my ex-wife when the great didn't we've got divorced and then after that year then you just think I start with the real words do we well real Wilkes kicking you know I've got a going there night to go and well I've got to go and do what I call a proper job I've got two brilliant boys listen true I have to look after pay for them some are focused but then went into making sure they are okay what about the challenges in your life David you seem very serene like yeah I'm you did on the page you do off it but is that the truth yeah more or less you know it's just it's just the way I'm you know people say oh yeah but you look so laid-back and you know I'm not I'm okay you know obviously I'm being not been divorced twice you know so there's there's other stuff that went on there but yeah I was I was ready for retirement you know I wanted to get like or Perry said I wanted to get back to be normal you because and even more immersive I need city was from a council council mistake you know I was from a terraced house that working-class boys yeah you know I would did have an insight toilet or bathroom till I was 14 you know so I was brought up without money then all of a sudden you get a lot of money well that thing just of of being a goalkeeper always remember Steve Harper saying to me people don't realize how tough it is just that little thing every time you're the guy picks the ball obviously your career is unbelievable but there were generally they fake me a lot because you feel like you've let everybody down but I think being a goalkeeper helps you in life as well because you make these mistakes and you recover and you have to recover because if you if you make that mistake in the first five minutes and you're a wreck for the rest of the game you it could really be bad for the team and so like maybe I don't know it's just me you use that like in your divorces where you just well I'm strong enough to be everyone and get on with it but that's what I did I moved on yeah you know I knew that he wasn't right where I was so I moved on you know I don't know it affected a lot of people you know thought I have to be selfish that to 2002 or 91 when you've made a big mistake you feel it it cost your team how did you go about picking yourself back up again I'd sit just by doing this stuff that I wanted so you know a lot of the time I would take myself away that need to go fishing or golfing you know and then just to think about stuff but yeah it was it wasn't something I did purposely you know because like you've made these mistakes I'm in the I'm in 2002 in the World Cup when when Ronde escort I was looking at a clock and I'll seek you was half an hour left you know please lots of come on get me out this and then about ten minutes later I'm thinking nothing's happening yet in the game and I remember thinking what am I gonna do if I get treated like BEC and we're not treated in night yeah I'm thinking this on the pitch mmm so you'll hit yeah so then basically you not hundred think really aren't you yeah because I know what sort of a consequence who couldn't be like you know so they like did not over to but they entered my head you know while I was on the pitch you know okay we we got B to one so then that's where at the end of the game then I just broke down because I felt like everybody down you know so then I'm like well what am I gonna do when it weren't until we actually got back to Heathrow and I'll still think him what am I gonna get treated like you know what am i doing and then luckily at Heathrow there was a load of hands there and they all starting in my name and it was like almost like a relief in some ways those fans who waited for you at the airport enchanted your name well they were the people saying it's okay yeah they were there people talking to you know funny kind of way he's funny out but how like footballers are put on a pedestal and playing for England number one goalie in the whole country one of the best in the world at the time you still want that approval everybody wants yeah approval no one so that means no one's really happy within themselves because they're always searching for someone else to make them feel better and that's a prime example with a drink and drugs that and the gambling that that was my feeling better attend people if nine of them say yeah you're brilliant you're brilliant and then one of them says that you're no good you remember you all remember it was the end of my career I stopped reading the papers I stopped reading the papers and I would even speak to anybody of the press site because there was there was too much stuff being put in there that was negative yeah that was affecting me if I read it yeah you know so I just stopped I stopped doing it affecting you in what way in making me feel like nervous not believing that I was good enough you know are they are they right am I too old yes I'm sitting here now and I'm thinking oh god Dave semen yeah she always was the most laid-back person I've ever seen to fall asleep on a clothesline maybe like that but all that's going on in his head and I play with him from known him since I was six I was 21 years of age and I've known him ever since and we've been on trips and things like that and I'm sitting here thinking I didn't even know that mmm so it just shows how many people how people don't really talk the main thing is to get people to talk it's such a thing and I and what I like about it keep on going on about is this is not meant and wealth week if they're not meant wealth day this is men and wealth for life you know and this this should be all the time all through the year you know I said EastEnders and Coronation Street they're probably the most watched two programs and nm Adele you know things should be put in between them every single program every single program so it becomes as normal in 10 years time to talk to someone as it what it is to get up in the morning and clean your teeth and talk I think three people are good friends you'd feel quite knit that I've learnt and they've all learned about each other today talking for an hour or two hours so that just shows you we known each other 30 years thanks guys Perry pleasure thanks guys

Channel: Sky Sports Premier League

Views: 320,015

Keywords: sky sports, premier league, Football League, football, Sky Sports live, Sky, Sports, stream, sky sports football, premier league highlights, epl other 1920, arsenal, arsenal fc, mental health football, paul merson, paul merson mental health, merson, arsenal legends, arsenal videos, arsenal chat, arsenal debate, paul merson arsenal, david seaman, seaman, perry groves, arsenal interview

Id: HPk6uHlq4mo

Length: 14min 43sec (883 seconds)

Published: Sun Feb 16 2020

Reddit Comments

[u/Fongo592]

This was done as part of the Heads Up campaign (their logo was on the players' sleeves today).

Mental health is such a big issue today and it is ok to not be ok. If you are feeling down, make sure to talk to someone be it family or friends.

If not then check out https://www.mind.org.uk/ or https://www.thecalmzone.net/ (for those in the UK)

[u/LordofLazy]

I'll never forget Perry groves being brought on as a sub and turning round a cup final against the dominant force of the day. My first trophy and what a way to do it.