Former Spurs star Mabbutt led club's efforts to help old boy Gascoigne through troubled times
Paul Gascoigne's former club Tottenham have revealed that they lent their support to the troubled star prior to his sectioning under the Mental Health Act.
Gascoigne, who will receive treatment for addiction and depression for an enforced period of six months after being released from hospital on Monday, remains one the club's most popular former players.
Paul Gascoigne who is receiving treatment for depression and addiction
Former club captain Gary Mabbutt - a team-mate of the 41-year-old at White Hart Lane - led Tottenham's efforts to help Gascoigne after he was sectioned for the first time in February. Mabbutt, along with representatives of the Professional Footballers' Association and Football Association, worked to provide the former England international with the medical care he required.
"Since Paul was first sectioned in February a number of people came together quietly - the club, both directly and through the Tottenham Tribute Trust, the FA, the PFA - to provide support both practical and financial - and to work, along with his friends and family, with his specialists to get the best treatment for him," Mabbutt told www.tottenhamhotspur.com.
"We were able to get treatment for Paul at the Priory and other clinics, but the problem was that when he was sober he would discharge himself only to relapse again. He was on the road to self-destruction so, after making every effort to protect his privacy, it was decided that we must enter the public domain in order to put some pressure through the media on the powers that be to have him sectioned.
"It has been a case of us all striving to help Paul through this difficult period of time. I must make it clear that Paul is not just an alcoholic, that is not the situation. He suffers from several disorders, including manic depression, that add to a pretty nasty cocktail of things going on in his head."
Chairman Daniel Levy added: "While the plight of Paul has in some quarters been put down to one of simply alcoholism, Gary has highlighted the real cause of Paul's illness.
"With great patience and determination he has continued to gather support for his former team-mate and called for him to be sectioned for his own long-term benefit."
