PAUL Merson fears gambling among the players may have contributed to England's flop at Euro 2000.
The Aston Villa midfielder went through a well-publicised battle against an addiction to gambling. And he reckons that if players get involved in card schools it can affect them on the pitch.
Responding to reports about a card school among England players during Kevin Keegan's reign, Merson warned: "It's not so much the amounts in-volved because players these days can afford to lose 50 grand on a single hand. The main problem is it is mentally draining.
"People do not understand what gambling does to you. They think you just put your money on and that is it. But it's on your mind all the time.
"You're constantly thinking about it and if you're playing cards, there's no way you can give football your full concentration."
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