DEFOE LEAVES SPURS on Brink
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SPORTS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2013 5 stay perfect; Defoe No money - but great memories for Gillespie leaves Spurs on brink LONDON: Despite an estimated salary of 10 million pounds ($16.17 million) from a 20-year soccer career, recently-retired former Northern Ireland winger Keith Gillespie faces an uncer- LONDON: Goals from Jan Vertonghen and tain financial future. The millions earned at Manchester United, Jermain Defoe left Tottenham Hotspur on Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers and a host of other British the cusp of the Europa League knockout and Irish clubs are long gone and gambling and bad invest- stages as four other clubs maintained per- ments have left him having to start again from scratch. fect starts on Thursday. Fiorentina, Instead of being financially secure for life, the 38-year-old Salzburg, Eintracht Frankfurt and Gillespie is dealing with the repercussions of being declared Ludogorets joined Spurs on nine points bankrupt in 2010. “I knew the bankruptcy was coming so it was from three games with a place in the last 32 a relief in the end,” he told Reuters in an interview to mark the beckoning. Twice UEFA Cup winners Sevilla publication of his autobiography ‘How Not to Be A Football needed a late goal to take a point at Slovan Millionaire’. “I worried about it at the time but once it was out Liberec but La Liga rivals Valencia contin- there and I was able to get myself back on my feet I was pleased ued their recovery after an opening defeat it was all over. “I feel lucky I’ve been a professional footballer by thumping St Gallen 5-1. and to play for the clubs that I have and for Northern Ireland 86 Defoe, with his sixth Europa League goal times. Most people grow up wanting to be a professional foot- in four games, equalled Martin Chivers’ club baller and I’ve lived that dream.” European record of 22 for Spurs with the sec- Gillespie hung up his boots this year after spending three sea- ond goal in a 2-0 win in Moldova over Sheriff sons at Longford Town in the second tier of the League of Tiraspol. Former England striker Chivers was Ireland. “I was left to my own devices. Clubs say they want to part of Spurs’ UEFA Cup-winning side of treat you like adults and if you’re earning money you’re expected 1972. Spurs could have qualified for the last to spend it wisely,” he said. “There was no-one there to say ‘don’t 32 with three group games still to play but be putting money on horses’ or anything like that.” Gillespie said needed Anzhi Makhachkala and Tromso to gambling was part of the culture of English football. draw in the other Group K game. Anzhi won 1-0, though, to leave Spurs waiting a bit LITTLE CLIQUES longer. Vertonghen headed home Christian “At clubs you have your little cliques of four or five at a mini- Eriksen’s 12th-minute cross and Defoe struck mum who like a bit of a punt - although obviously not to the from 25 metres with 15 minutes remaining. extent that I liked it,” he added. “You’d go in and you’d go Substitute Victor Machin equalised two straight to the horse racing pages, you’d be talking about minutes from time as Sevilla salvaged a 1-1 draw against Slovan Liberec in the Czech what’s racing today and what you backed yesterday. “That’s a Republic to stay top of Group H with seven common thing. All the clubs I was at, they had playing cards on points. The hosts led through Michael the coach journeys too. It’s been about for a long time.” Rabusic’s first-half goal but had goalkeeper Despite several high-profile cases involving players with Premysl Kovar dismissed on 78 minutes and gambling issues, Gillespie said the problem was getting worse. Machin rounded his replacement Lukas “I think gambling is more rife now. I was one of the first to be Hrosso to level late on. Valencia, UEFA Cup exposed,” he explained. Gillespie’s problems suddenly became winners in 2004, ran riot in the first half public knowledge when a tabloid newspaper reported that against St Gallen at Mestalla, Argentine Newcastle had to step in to help him settle a debt to a book- Federico Cartabia scoring two of four first- maker after the winger lost 47,000 pounds in one day in half goals. October 1995 - a day he refers to as ‘Black Friday’. The Spaniards moved on to six points in The club ended up advancing him part of a signing-on Group A, one behind Swansea City who con- bonus to settle his arrears. Gillespie said his gambling never ceded a penalty in stoppage time that affected his form on the pitch, as shown by an outstanding dis- secured Kuban Krasnodar a 1-1 draw in play in a Premier League game straight after ‘Black Friday’. “A Wales. Fiorentina, fresh from a remarkable couple of days later we played at Tottenham and I played very fightback from 2-0 down to beat Juventus 4- well. On the way home (manager) Kevin Keegan said to Peter 2 in Serie A on Sunday, brushed aside TIRASPOL: FC Sheriff Tiraspol’s defender and captain Miral Samardzic (left) Beardsley on the coach, ‘He could be the best player in the Romania’s Pandurii 3-0 in Group E while vies with Tottenham Hotspur’s defender and captain Jan Vertonghen (right) country at the moment’, so it wasn’t harming my performances Salzburg continue to impress. They set a during their UEFA Europa League Group K football match in Tiraspol. — AFP at all. “In fact for me going out and playing 90 minutes was a record of 31 games unbeaten in the Austrian relief.” Despite his difficulties Gillespie said he still liked a bet at Bundesliga at the weekend and got the bet- a 2-0 win at home over Legia Warsaw, have Miguel Vitor pulled one back. the weekends. ter of a feisty Group C encounter with seven points to Lazio’s five. Stoch had his first spot-kick saved by Standard Liege in which three players saw A second-half goal from Clement Grenier Bojan Saranov before atoning by setting up SMALL STAKES red. Salzburg, who won 2-1 thanks to goals handed Olympique Lyon their first Group I Sotiris Ninis to level. Slovakian international “I keep it to very small stakes but I enjoy Saturday after- from Jonathan Soriano and Ramalho, had win after two draws, the French side edging Stoch then had another penalty saved by noons as the scores come in with my football bet in front of me. Sadio Mane sent off late in the first half, Rijeka 1-0 to move on to five points, along Saranov just before halftime but his blushes It’s more of an interest than anything - it’s not going to get me shortly after Mehdi Carcela-Gonzalez was dis- with Real Betis who beat Vitoria Guimares by were spared when Dimitros Salpingidis into any trouble,” he added. Gillespie came through the missed for Liege. the same scoreline. volleyed in the winner at the near post on 66 Manchester United youth ranks alongside David Beckham and The Belgians were reduced to nine men An extraordinary match in Salonika saw minutes. Eintracht, 2-0 winners at home to Gary Neville before being sold to Newcastle as part of the deal on 67 minutes when Brazilian defender Kanu hosts PAOK concede twice in the first 21 min- Maccabi Tel Aviv, hold a five-point lead in that took striker Andy Cole in the opposite direction. He went was shown a straight red. Lazio relinquished utes, miss two penalties with Miroslav Stoch Group F while Bulgarian champions on to represent Blackburn and Sheffield United among others top spot in Group J to Trabzonspor after the wasting both and still run out 3-2 winners to Ludogorets won 1-0 at Chernomorets and whatever money he did not gamble was invested in prop- Italian side could only draw 0-0 away at take control of Group L. Haifa were 2-0 up Odessa to lead PSV Eindhoven by five points Apollon Limassol. Trabzonspor, who eased to through Dino Ndlovu and Eyal Golasa before in Group B. — Reuters erty deals and film productions that could have earned him tax relief on his football income. But most of his investments turned sour and a debt to British tax authorities arising from one such scheme eventually led to him being declared bankrupt. Australia suspends “Money has been lost and not through gambling,” said Gillespie. “I had good sound investments that were to be there for me when I was 35 but with some bad advice and some 5 over match-fixing naivety from me, that disappeared too.” Matthew Etherington, a player with English Premier League Stoke City, also lost hun- MELBOURNE: Four players and a coach facing criminal “FFA has determined that as the four players and coach are dreds of thousands of pounds at the height of a betting addic- charges related to match-fixing in Australia’s second tier facing serious criminal charges... they have breached the obli- tion and said he turned to ‘loan sharks’ when his money ran Victorian Premier League have been suspended from all soc- gation in the Code to not bring FFA or the game of football out. Etherington, who began gambling as a young player at cer activities, the country’s governing body said yesterday.