Former Liverpool star Jason McAteer openly spoke about the mental health struggles he faced after retiring from football, revealing that he nearly took his own life. McAteer, now 53 years old, played exactly 100 matches for Liverpool during his successful career, also playing for Bolton, Blackburn, Sunderland, and Tranmere before hanging up his boots in 2007.The former Ireland international struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts after retirement, as he tried to adjust to a life without football. McAteer, who now occasionally works as a pundit, suffered an emotional breakdown and broke down in tears during an interview on a show hosted by former Manchester United defender Mikael Silvestre on beIN Sports.”Jason McAteer’s Viking hat story from World Cup ’94 is legendary! ⚽🇮🇪 #WorldCup94 #FootballLegends #JasonMcAteer #RoyKeane #FootballBanter” pic.twitter.com/6LpBaqy8FF— Footy Podcast Clips (@FootyPodClips) January 9, 2025 The Reds legend shared how close he was to ending his life by intentionally crashing his car, admitting that he fought with himself to avoid doing so while driving to his son Harry.”I just had no purpose, no structure. The TV stuff, I wasn’t working every day of the week, it would be maybe one or two shows a week. It was very sporadic. Days and days and days with nothing to do. I got to the tunnel, between the Wirral and Liverpool, because my child that I was keeping this relationship with under difficult circumstances lived the other side of this tunnel. I was driving through the tunnel and it upsets me this because it takes me back to this moment and I can feel it, and as you go out the daylight into the tunnel light, I remember thinking to myself, I could just swing the car here and just end it. That’s how easy it is. And I was fighting myself not to do it. I was fighting, ‘Do it, do it, do it, do it’. And I’d be like, ‘No, no’. And I’d be fighting the steering wheel. And I remember coming towards the end of the tunnel and the daylight was opening up, and coming out the tunnel I was thinking, ‘Thank God, just thank God’. said McAteer😞 “People don’t understand where the void can take you…”@MCATEER4 speaks with @IamMSilvestre about the mental toll retirement can take on a professional footballer.Watch the #TalesTearsTrophies podcast: 🔗 https://t.co/loscY8VoXb#LFC pic.twitter.com/gUnPzB6SE8— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) March 3, 2025 McAteer, who also discussed this battle in his 2017 autobiography “Blood, Sweat & Jason McAteer,” continued to urge governing bodies to support retired players in adapting to life after football. Talking about that, he added: “The evolution of football, not just football on the pitch and the business side of things, but the mental side of it as well. It has to improve.” UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE – ROUND OF 16First legTuesday 20.45: (2.85) Club Brugge (3.25) Aston Villa (2.55)23.00: (1.80) Dortmund (3.60) Lille (4.60)23.00: (3.80) PSV (3.45) Arsenal (2.00)23.00: (1.87) Real Madrid (3.50) Atl.Madrid (4.20)Wednesday 20.45: (5.60) Feyenoord (3.70) Inter (1.65)23.00: (1.82) Bayern (3.60) Leverkusen (4.40)23.00: (3.80) Benfica (3.60) Barcelona (1.95)23.00: (2.45) PSG (3.45) Liverpool (2.80)***odds are subject to change***
