depression

THE Nineties might have been ruled by boybands and girl-bands, but life at the top of pop could be tough.

And it was probably worse for the girls, as putting on extra pounds, dating the wrong guy or, heaven forbid, having a baby were hugely frowned upon by management teams.

New BBC documentary Girlbands Forever, the follow-up to last year’s three-parter about boybands, delves into an era where record companies had less regard for duty of care, days off or mental health.

It features members of Atomic Kitten, Eternal, Sugababes, Mis-teeq and Little Mix, providing insight into what it was like being in an all-female group in the Nineties and early Noughties.

The dream was to replicate the success of the Spice Girls, the all-conquering icons who sparked the girlband explosion.

And record labels invested millions in a bid to find the next big thing.

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But as the Spice Girls’ rivals All Saints found out, the pressure became unbearable.

So much so that when founding member Melanie Blatt informed managers that she and bandmate Nicole Appleton were pregnant, both were told to abort their babies.

The reason? They had just cracked America with No1 hit Never Ever and momentum could be lost.

Melanie, 50, explains: “I hadn’t been with my partner for very long, it was definitely a bit of a surprise It wasn’t people congratulating us. It was more like this look of dread and worry and the realisation that things are going to change.

“We flew to LA and at [airport] LAX our manager, he was behind us, was telling us to abort our babies.”

She added that her bosses told them they were “going to ruin everything” and “it was the end of the band”.

Melanie ended up having her baby with her partner, Stuart Zender, the bassist for band Jamiroquai.

‘Vomiting in toilets’

But Nicole, who fell pregnant with then boyfriend Robbie Williams, did not, which Melanie admits caused issues with their relationship.

She explains: “Nic and I had been best friends since we were 11. We took pregnancy tests in a hotel in Canada and spent that whole night discussing bringing our kids up together. It was one of the best nights ever.

“And it’s not really my place to talk about it, but unfortunately . . . it was a very uncomfortable situation because I kept mine, she didn’t. That was a really tricky part of my and our existence.”

All Saints, which consisted of Melanie, sisters Nicole and Natalie and main songwriter Shaznay Lewis, were always deemed a “cool version” of the Spice Girls and were far more rock ‘n’ roll.

Whereas Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton and Mel B found love with a footballer, an R&B singer and a dancer respectively, the All Saints girls dated rock stars, with Nicole marrying and having a son with Liam Gallagher.

Melanie says: “We were turning up to kids’ TV shows on a Saturday morning without having one wink of sleep. We looked fine, just a bit of vomiting in the toilets prior to CD:UK.”

After two albums, All Saints split in 2001, a disparity in earnings between Shaznay and the rest of the band being a major factor.

By the end of their existence as a group, Melanie says they “hated each other”.

She adds: “We’d fallen out, it was hell, it was ‘separate’ everything.

“It was just ridiculous but literally one of the proudest moments of being in that band was calling it quits because we didn’t stay for the money. We wanted to be done, we didn’t want to be with each other any more and we made that decision.

“We were in control. We were supposed to go on tour and we gave the money back and I’m so proud of that. That’s one of the only decisions we were all happy to make together, telling each other to f*** off.”

• Girlbands Forever begins on Saturday at 9.20pm on BBC Two.

Little Mix

AS girlbands moved into the 2010s, life did not get any easier, with social media now to contend with.

With Little Mix, Perrie Edwards, 32, bore the brunt of the online abuse due to her relationship with One Direction heart-throb Zayn Malik.

She explains: “Social media was dark, especially back in the day.

“Me and the girls used to get a lot of stick. Things we would wear or how we would look, people would pick us apart.

“You’re hurting enough as it is, never mind everybody having an opinion on it. Everyone wants to know your business and everyone feels like they have ownership in that.

“You can’t escape it. So you may as well sing about it.”

Life in girlbands was relentless, so Little Mix lasting ten years was a monumental achievement.

But Perrie, below, admits she almost quit when she was at her lowest ebb ahead of a gig in Las Vegas.

She says: “I didn’t want to go, I was so exhausted. I tried getting out of the trip and when I got there, I started experiencing panic attacks.

“I didn’t know what was happening at the time, I’d never experienced a panic attack.

“I ended up in a hospital. I didn’t want to let the girls down. They had to do it without me and I hated it and I really resented myself for it.”

She adds: “When you’re in a group dynamic, even though you’re going through stuff individually, you can’t just be selfish so I kind of put a brave face on a lot of time.

“I didn’t want to let the team down.”

Eternal

ETERNAL had a No1 smash hit with I Wanna Be The Only One in 1997, but their looks soon became a concern.

Founding member Kelle Bryan, 50, reveals: “People were always voicing concerns about my weight and about our weight as a band. Stylists would come along and say, ‘This doesn’t fit you, this doesn’t fit you’.

“We’re talking about an era where being a size zero was popular, so they sent us away to this place in the countryside where they were able to control what we ate.”

Atomic Kitten

WHILE on the 1999 Smash Hits Tour, Atomic Kitten’s Kerry Katona fell for Westlife singer Brian McFadden, but was ordered not to date him by management.

Kerry, 45, says: “They all went absolutely f*ing apes**t. I remember [Westlife manager] Louis Walsh saying, ‘I don’t like you, you’re trouble’.

Bandmate and best pal Natasha Hamilton, 43, adds: “It was definitely bad for the brand. Not from my point of view but from the label and management. They said girls can’t be seen with one of the boys in the biggest boyband in the UK because fan jealousy is a thing.”

Mis-Teeq

BEING an all-black group who rose up from the “underground scene” in 1999, Mis-Teeq felt they were discriminated against and given fewer opportunities.

Su-Elise Nash, 44, says: “We weren’t invited to the same premieres. Some magazines wouldn’t consider us for the cover because they didn’t think three black girls would sell.

“Our struggle to get there was definitely not as easy as it would have been if we had one white member or we’d all-white.”

Sugababes

WHEN Sugababes founding member Mutya Buena gave birth to her first child aged 19 – while the band were working on their fourth album – there was no let-up.

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Mutya, now 40, quit the group that same year in 2005 and was later diagnosed with post-natal depression.

Record label exec Darcus Beese says: “I remember standing in my kitchen trying to talk her down. I had no concept of post-natal depression. I would ask questions now like, ‘How’s your mental health?’.”

BOXING champion Ricky Hatton fought bravely not just in the ring but also with his own mental health struggles.

The legendary boxer, 46, previously spoke out about his battles outside the sport after retiring in 2012.

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Ricky was found dead at his home this morning, just months after he announced his return to the ring.

Boxer Ricky, who won 45 of his 48 pro fights during a glittering career, previously spoke about his struggles with depression and how he had fought back from the brink with his mental health and alcohol addiction.

Talking about his struggles, the multi-weight world champ told Radio 4 earlier this year: “I used to go to the pub, come back and sit there in the dark crying hysterically.”

He had also been open about the need for boxers to get more help after hanging up their gloves.

In the past, Ricky had also talked about how his life took a dark turn after losing to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a 2007 fight in Las Vegas.

He explained how he overcame problems with drink, drugs and depression, and why mental health issues are so prevalent in boxing.

Ricky told BBC Sport: “If a boxer can come out and say they’re struggling and crying every day, it’s going to make a huge difference.

“Having gone through it, I now see it as my job to help those suffering with mental health.”

The boxing legend ballooned up in weight after his retirement as he struggled with alcohol abuse and depression, but got himself back on the straight and narrow three years ago for an exhibition bout with Mexican great Marco Antonio Barrera.

Ricky, nicknamed “the Hitman”, was incredibly popular among boxing fans and enjoyed fame both during his career and after announcing his 2012 retirement.

And he never shied away from his mental health battles, bravely fighting his demons for years after quitting the sport.

Ricky even shared just months ago that he was planning his comeback to boxing, with a fight set for December 2.

Speaking to SunSport earlier this year, he shared how he had been inspired by Oasis’ comeback tour, as well as his weight loss, to bring himself back into the ring.

He said: “It inspired a lot of people, you know, for me to get in shape again at the age I’m at.

“Especially bearing in mind all my problems I’ve had personally with mental health and stuff like that.

“It was nice for so many people to come up to me and go, ‘Oh, I’ve always struggled with my weight and to see you get it off at your age.’

“I’ve always struggled with my mental health and I’ve had my problems.

“And to see where you were a few years ago to what you’re doing now, it’s inspirational.”

Ricky had first retired from the sport in 2011 before announcing a comeback fight in 2012.

However, his ill-fated bout against Vyacheslav Senchenko led to his immediate retirement in November that year.

But inspired by the Gallagher brothers, who also walked him to the ring for his 2008 win over Pauli Malignaggi, Ricky was looking forward to a return to the spotlight, 13 years after his last professional bout.

YOUNG people being overdiagnosed with mental health conditions has left the state at breaking point, a report warns.

Policy Exchange’s study is backed by Jeremy Hunt, who as Health Secretary in 2012 pushed to give mental health the same importance as physical health.

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He now admits a surge in diagnoses — as parents chased support for kids — had “unintended consequences” by overwhelming the special educational needs (SEND) system.

The report says costs are “unsustainable” and seeks a radical overhaul.

Mr Hunt said: “We seem to have lost sight of the reality that child development is a messy and uneven process.”

He added that in trying to support young people there are “excessive impulses to medicalise and diagnose the routine, which can undercut grit and resilience”.

Earlier in the year, The Sun revealed that nearly one million children and young people were referred for mental health help last year.

Over 958,200 children in England were referred to Children and Young People’s Mental Health Services.

That is equal to eight per cent of England’s population of 12 million children.

And an increase of 10,000 from the previous year, according to research by the Children’s Commissioner. 

Anxiety was the most common reason, followed by neurodevelopmental conditions and autism.

Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza called for urgent action to tackle waiting times.

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As authorities identified the shooter in the deadly attack on CDC headquarters as a Georgia man who blamed the COVID-19 vaccine for making him depressed and suicidal, a union representing workers at the agency is demanding that federal officials condemn vaccine misinformation, saying it was putting scientists at risk.

The union said that Friday’s shooting at the Atlanta offices of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which left a police officer dead, was not a random incident and that it “compounds months of mistreatment, neglect, and vilification that CDC staff have endured.”

The American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2883, said the CDC and leadership of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services must provide a “clear and unequivocal stance in condemning vaccine disinformation.”

The 30-year-old gunman, who died during the event, had also tried to get into the CDC’s headquarters in Atlanta but was stopped by guards before driving to a pharmacy across the street and opening fire, a law enforcement official told the Associated Press on Saturday.

The man, identified as Patrick Joseph White, was armed with five guns, including at least one long gun, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.

Here’s what to know about the shooting and the continuing investigation:

An attack on a public health institution

Police say White opened fire outside the CDC headquarters in Atlanta on Friday, leaving bullet marks in windows across the sprawling campus. At least four CDC buildings were hit, agency Director Susan Monarez said on X.

DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose was mortally wounded while responding. Rose, 33, a former Marine who served in Afghanistan, had graduated from the police academy in March.

White was found on the second floor of a building across the street from the CDC campus and died at the scene, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said. “We do not know at this time whether that was from officers or if it was self-inflicted,” he said.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the crime scene was “complex” and the investigation would take “an extended period of time.”

CDC union’s call

The American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2883, is calling for a statement condemning vaccine misinformation from the Department of Health and Human Services. The agency is led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who rose to public prominence on healthcare issues as a leading vaccine skeptic, sometimes advancing false information.

A public statement by federal officials condemning misinformation is needed to help prevent violence against scientists, the union said in a news release.

“Their leadership is critical in reinforcing public trust and ensuring that accurate, science-based information prevails,” the union said.

Fired But Fighting, a group of laid-off CDC employees, has said Kennedy is directly responsible for the villainization of the CDC’s workforce through “his continuous lies about science and vaccine safety, which have fueled a climate of hostility and mistrust.”

Kennedy reached out to staff on Saturday, saying that “no one should face violence while working to protect the health of others.”

Thousands of people who work on critical disease research are employed on the campus. The union said some staff members were huddled in various buildings until late at night, including more than 90 young children who were locked down inside the CDC’s Clifton School.

The union said CDC staff should not be required to immediately return to work after experiencing such a traumatic event. In a statement released Saturday, it said windows and buildings should first be fixed and made “completely secure.”

“Staff should not be required to work next to bullet holes,” the union said. “Forcing a return under these conditions risks re-traumatizing staff by exposing them to the reminders of the horrific shooting they endured.”

The union also called for “perimeter security on all campuses” until the investigation is fully completed and shared with staff.

Shooter’s focus on COVID-19 vaccine

White’s father, who contacted police and identified his son as the possible shooter, said White had been upset over the death of his dog and had become fixated on the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a law enforcement official.

A neighbor of White told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that White “seemed like a good guy” but spoke with her multiple times about his distrust of COVID-19 vaccines in unrelated conversations.

“He was very unsettled, and he very deeply believed that vaccines hurt him and were hurting other people,” Nancy Hoalst told the newspaper. “He emphatically believed that.”

But Hoalst said she never believed White would be violent: “I had no idea he thought he would take it out on the CDC.”

Haigh writes for the Associated Press.

June 29 (UPI) — Barry made landfall as a tropical depression off the eastern Gulf Coast of Mexico on Sunday night, and was expected to bring heavy rains and flash flooding to the North American nation over the next few days.

Barry was located about 15 miles south-southeast of Tampico, on Mexico’s eastern coast, in the Gulf of Mexico, with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph, the National Hurricane Center said in its 10 p.m. CDT update.

It was moving northwest at 9 mph.

A tropical storm warning had been in effect for the Gulf Coast of Mexico from Boca de Catan southward to Tecolutla has been canceled.

“The primary impact with Barry remains heavy rainfall and flash flooding for the upslope areas of eastern Mexico,” the NHC said in a discussion on the storm.

Between 3 and 6 inches of rainfall are expected with isolated maximum totals of 10 inches across the Mexican states of Veracruz, San Luis Potosi and Tamaulipas through Monday, forecasters said.

“This rainfall may produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain,” it said.

Tropical Depression Barry is the second named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is forecasting between 13 and 19 named storms for this year.

Mark Wildblood, the founder of Hear Our Voice – the choir made up of people impacted by the Post Office scandal – says the initiative has been ‘therapeutic’ after a battle with depression.

Hear Our Voice, the choir made up of people affected by the Post Office scandal which placed seventh in the recent series of Britain’s Got Talent, are releasing a new charity single alongside band Will & The People.

The single, Falling Down, is a rendition of the song they performed in their audition for Britain’s Got Talent. And choir founder Mark Wildblood says the initiative has been ‘life changing’ for him, admitting the talent show stint has made a significant impact on his mental health.

“I personally have found it very therapeutic,” said Mark. “I was on antidepressants prescribed by my doctor for a long long time and I spoke to them very early this year and I said, ‘Look [the choir] is really starting to make me feel good and I wouldn’t mind trying to go without [the antidepressants].

“So, at the recommendation of doctors I was told it’s ok to give it a go and I haven’t been back on them since,” he says of the choir’s impact.

Continuing that it has given him ‘purpose’ following dark days, Mark shared, “It’s not difficult to get caught up in dwelling on all of the negatives. So, to be surrounded by the same people that you talk to about it every day and that are seeing the positives as well, I think we’ve done a really really positive thing and a lot of that is thanks to BGT.”

While Mark says the choir has meant he’s managed to let go of ‘anger’ he was holding onto against the post office, he confirms that the ‘concern’ remains. “My concern for the procedure is not eliminated. We still have to make sure that we get closure and closure can only come with compensation.”

Mark was a sub-postmaster at Upton Post Office before he was suspended from the role as one of the thousands of people impacted by the Post Office scandal. The scandal saw the wrongful prosecution of sub-postmasters and postmistresses by the Post Office, who accused them of theft, fraud, and false accounting due to faulty data from the Horizon IT system used by the company.

He founded the choir in May 2024, inviting others impacted by the scandal to take part and raise money for the cause, alongside awareness. As the former tour manager for Will and the People, Mark then enlisted lead singer Will Rendle to get involved as he fronted the act on Britain’s Got Talent.

And detailing how the choir has become a family dynamic, Mark said, “W e always say to each other that we have become family now. The choir is spread out throughout the country and so BGT has given us the opportunity to actually meet five times in a very short space of time and be together.”

Many of the victims are still awaiting compensation from the Post Office, with Mark admitting that despite the success of their campaigning and the recent TV series; Mr Bates vs The Post Office, there’s still a long way to go.

It comes as Simon Recaldin, a Post Office boss who has been backing compensation for the scandal victims, has left his position in the company. Simon is thought to have opted for voluntary redundancy, a move which comes amid the increased pressure on the company to pay victims. Previously, the government announced that those who have had convictions overturned are eligible for £600,000, with hundreds still waiting for the compensation.

“Scandals like these have a commonality where the bureaucracy of closure takes so long that many people pass away by the time that the situations are resolved – I just hope that we don’t get into that situation,” says Mark of those yet to be paid. “We’ve already lost a lot of people in the Post Office scandal and we can’t afford to lose more without getting a speed up, so I would say to those in power, please change the system. It’ll be better for everyone all round and cost a lot less money if they just do it now as it should be,” pleaded Mark.

With fellow choir member Maria Lockwood joking that the unit would be keen to front the Glastonbury stage this summer, Mark says he isn’t opposed to the idea. “We wouldn’t say no to anything where we had the opportunity to get together in person again and Glastonbury would be amazing, that would be phenomenal.”

Falling Down, the single by Hear Our Voice choir and Will and The People, is available on all platforms from tomorrow, 10 June. 100% of profits after costs from the single are going to the Horizon Scandal Fund and Lost Chances—two organisations supporting victims and their families.

John Brenkus, the charismatic TV host who found creative ways to get sports fans to think about science, has died, his production company, Brinx.TV, said Sunday in a statement.

“John, co-founder of Base Productions, founder of Brinx.TV, and co-creator and host of the 6-time Emmy Award-winning ‘Sport Science,’ had been battling depression,” the statement read. “John lost his fight with this terrible illness on May 31st, 2025.”

The statement added that Brenkus’ “heartbroken family and friends request privacy at this time, and encourage anyone who is struggling with depression to seek help.”

Brenkus grew up in Vienna, Va., and was a participant in multiple Ironman Triathlon races. Also a successful businessman and media producer, Brenkus was best known as the host of “Sport Science.”

The show aired from 2007-2017, first on Fox Sports as hour-long episodes for two seasons, then on ESPN in segment form within the network’s other programs. It featured scientific experiments that tested common notions about athletes, their abilities and the capacity of the human body.

In addition to the participation of numerous sports stars, Brenkus would often take part in the experiments, putting himself “in harm’s way for the sake of scientific discovery,” as ESPN once put it.

“Standing a very average 5’ 8” tall, and tipping the scales at an equally average 160 pounds, Brenkus intersperses his hosting and executive producing duties on Sport Science with performances as the show’s ‘Everyman,’ to help demonstrate what happens when a regular guy steps on the field, into the ring, or on the court with top athletes at the top of their games,” a 2009 ESPN press release stated. “Along the way, he helps audiences understand their own physiologies and how to improve their overall performance, health and well-being.”

ESPN’s Randy Scott remembered his former colleague, who was reportedly 53 when he died, Monday morning on “SportsCenter.”

“John was uniquely talented and singularly brilliant at not only analyzing sports but then translating sports and science to generations of fans in memorable ways, because John was memorable,” Scott said. “… This world was a better place with John Brenkus in it.”

Born in Vizzolo Predabissi, a village 15 miles away from San Siro and the site of his so-far most iconic moment, Acerbi’s sporting history began in 2006 at nearby Pavia in Serie C.

After a loan spell at Renate in Serie D, Acerbi began touring Italy with moves to Reggina, Genoa and Chievo, where he made his Serie A debut and emerged as one of the most promising defenders in the league.

AC Milan, the club he had supported since childhood, took notice of his qualities. In 2012 he made a permanent move to the Rossoneri where, however, things did not turn out as expected.

Acerbi had a problem, which in turn triggered others – an unresolved relationship with his father, his first admirer but also his first critic.

“He wanted to do me good, but without meaning to, he would go so far as to hurt me,” Acerbi recently said of his father’s constant criticism.

Paolo Franchini, the psychotherapist who helped Acerbi make peace with his father over the years, said: “He was his number one fan, but also his number one pain in the neck. He was always pointing out the mistakes he made.”

Now, when Acerbi raises his arms to the sky at the start of each game, he does it for him, but his has been a long journey.

His father died shortly after his move to AC Milan. Acerbi lost his balance and fell into depression.

“Already at the beginning of my career I didn’t really have the right attitude for a professional player,” he later said.

“I would often arrive tipsy at trainings, without having fully recovered from the night before. I was physically strong, and that was enough for me.

“As my father died, however, I hit rock bottom. I no longer had any drive and could no longer play. I was sick and would drink anything.”

After just six months, the Rossoneri loaned him back to Chievo, then he moved on again to Sassuolo at the end of the season.

FRANCESCO ACERBI was the oldest player on the pitch in Inter Milan’s memorable Champions League semi-final win over Barcelona.

But he defied his veteran 37 years and centre-back defensive instincts to grab a dramatic 93rd-minute equaliser at the San Siro.

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So yes, it may well have been Davide Frattesi who was the one who actually scored the winning goal to set up Saturday’s final showdown with PSG.

But Inter head to Munich still thanking their old-timer for keeping their Champions League dream alive, desperate to be crowned Kings of Europe for the fourth time.

And not only did Acerbi’s superb striker’s finish epitomise a bonkers two-legged tie against Barcelona.

But that cute, near-post effort to get in front of Ronald Araujo and find Wojciech Szczesny’s top corner may well be his own personal crowning moment of a career that has seen it all. 

Born in the outskirts of Milan in February 1988, Acerbi is now 90 minutes away from completing the circle by leading I Nerazzurri to European glory. 

But his road to the San Siro – the site of his goal that will live long in the memory of all Inter fans – is far longer than the 15 miles from suburban Vizzolo Predabissi.

And it features battles on the pitch with the world’s best strikers but more importantly off the pitch, too, with cancer, depression and alcohol. 

JOURNEYMAN CAREER

Acerbi started out in Serie C at Pavia in 2006 and even featured in the semi-professional Serie D on loan at Renate.

A loan to Spezia’s youth team followed before permanent spells at Reggina, Genoa and Chievo, where he eventually made his top-flight debut. 

AC Milan came calling in 2012 and he was briefly team-mates with the likes of Robinho and Mario Balotelli.

But after just six months of struggling for minutes, he was sold to Genoa, who immediately loaned him back to Chievo.

It wasn’t until Acerbi signed for Sassuolo in 2013 that he finally had stability, spending five seasons there before four at Lazio.

He initially joined Inter on loan in 2022-23 where he was reunited with ex-Lazio boss Simone Inzaghi and made the move permanent the following summer. 

That transfer took his tally to 14 spells with ten different clubs.

FRAN THE MAN

Acerbi scored an all-important header against bitter rivals and former employers AC Milan in April 2024.

That helped his side to a 2-1 win which saw them confirmed as Serie A champions for the 20th time.

A year earlier, towards the end of his loan season, Acerbi came in for huge praise for his performance in the Champions League final.

Inter were ultimately beaten 1-0 by Manchester City but the Italian centre-half managed to keep Erling Haaland quiet and off the scoresheet. 

HEALTH STRUGGLES

However, Acerbi’s toughest challenges have come away from football.

His father died during his short stint at AC Milan, triggering depression which led to him turning and even relying on alcohol to numb the pain and suffering. 

Then upon signing for Sassuolo in 2013 at the start of the next season, Acerbi was diagnosed with testicular cancer. 

A regular health check-up flagged unusual blood test results and he immediately underwent surgery to remove the tumour. 

But having returned to training and competitive action, he failed an anti-doping test. 

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Acerbi denied taking any banned performance-enhancing drugs and it transpired the irregular hormone levels were because the cancer had come back again. 

As a result, the defender had two months of chemotherapy at the start of 2014.

But Acerbi actually credits the two bouts of cancer for “saving” him from the depression and alcoholism.

He candidly explained to La Repubblica in 2019: “After my father died, when I was playing for Milan, I hit rock bottom. 

“It was as if I’d forgotten how to play, or why I was playing. I started drinking and, believe me, I’d drink anything. 

“It might seem like a terrible paradox, but the cancer saved me. I had something new to fight against, a limit to overcome. 

“It was as if I got to start life all over again and saw the world in a way I’d completely forgotten. I stopped being scared. 

“I was thinking to myself, ‘What will you do if it comes back again?’ ‘I’ll face it again,’ I replied.

“Chemotherapy was like stepping into a parallel world, the entrance to which is closer than you could possibly think, so you never leave it again. It’s a world of pain and of courage.

“I think having that illness improved me as a person, cancelling out remorse and regret. 

“I became an observer of my surroundings. I eliminated the superfluous, the negative, but also the illusions. I stopped dreaming big and started to focus on simple targets.”

EURO HERO

Incredibly, Acerbi made his senior Italy international debut later in the same year he underwent the chemotherapy. 

But by 2019, he had still only managed to add two further appearances – one in 2016, one in 2018 – before being brought back into the fold by Roberto Mancini.

And while Acerbi won’t go down as one of the all-time great Italian defenders with the likes of Paolo Maldini, Fabio Cannavaro, Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini et al, he was awarded the top Order of Merit in Italy after being part of the Euro 2020-winning squad.

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He set up the extra-time winner against Austria in the round of 16 then was an unused sub in the quarters, semis and final, where the Azzurri beat England on penalties. 

Acerbi, though, has not added to his 34 caps since 2023 and pulled out of the squad in March 2024 after allegations he made racist comments to Napoli’s Juan Jesus during a Serie A match earlier that month.

A Serie A sports judge dismissed the case, citing a lack of evidence, as Acerbi escaped punishment – a decision furious Napoli labelled “astonishing”. 

BARCA DRAMA

Acerbi hit the headlines for all the right reasons, though, with his goal against Barcelona – four months on from marrying Claudia Scarpari, the mum of his two daughters.

Inzaghi deployed him in the Harry Maguire role – throwing the big centre-back up front in the desperate hunt for a goal.

And just like the Manchester United man against Lyon, Acerbi came up trumps.

Incredibly, that was his very first career goal in European football in his 66th appearance across the Champions League and Europa League. 

To make the finish even more impressive and remarkable, the left-footed 6ft 4ins unit scored with his right foot. 

So it was no wonder he ripped his famous black-and-blue shirt and then his underlayer off in sheer unbridled delirious delight to reveal his tattooed torso.

Acerbi’s many inkings will tell their own stories.

But the image of the seasoned and battle-scarred pensioner unsure how to celebrate his magic moment other than jumping gleefully on to his knees punctuates a truly turbulent tale of football with the most emphatic of exclamation marks.

Now can he write one more chapter in his rollercoaster novel at the Allianz Arena?

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