Former West Germany international, a recovering alcoholic, stated that several German League players are facing the same problem, and have contacted him on how to deal with the addiction.
The former Werder Bremen and Borussia Monchengladbach star Uli Borowka revealed that current Bundesliga professionals are experiencing a similar problem to him. The ex-defender wrote a book that told his battle with alcohol at
the twilight of his career after playing in the top flight division for almost two decades.
The 50-year-old claimed he has not touched alcohol since 2000. The star player has six caps for his country and represented the West http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Germany-c2904 side at the 1988 UEFA European Championships. He played all the games in that tournament
and helped them reach the semi-finals.
The veteran conceded that the players have sought his advice as he went through the same situation in his playing career. He maintained that he will not reveal the number of Bundesliga stars indulged in the problem, but confirmed
that there are plenty.
"Of course there are! I cannot give a number, but the grey area is very large," he was quoted as saying in an interview.
The former central defender insisted that other than alcohol, drugs and other substances are also being used commonly. He vowed not to take names but said that when he came out with his admission, a lot of other footballers approached
him.
"Besides alcohol, there are other problems. Drugs and other addictions,” he mused.
"I will never name names, but when I told my story for the first time, many professional footballers contacted me,” he stated.
Borowka added that the troubled players asked for his advice, as they had no one else to contact.
"Some wanted advice from me, as they didn't know who else they could turn to,” he added.
"I am planning to found an organisation to which professionals can turn to with their problems. In four weeks it should be ready," he concluded.
Borowka revealed that he will start an institute where footballers can visit and discuss their issues. It will be designed to help them and said it will be running within a month.
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