I’m in a relegation battle but I don’t want to leave yet… I need to lose more weight, says Strictly’s Paul Merson

IN an optimistic bid to adhd TV’s Glitterball to his trophy collection, Paul Merson is approaching Strictly similar shot – and helium isn’t acceptable for an aboriginal bath.

The erstwhile England, Arsenal and Aston Villa prima says helium is getting match-fit for the gruelling routines connected the BBC One creation contest, and has already shed astir 2st.

And though Paul, 56, is regularly astatine the bottommost of the show’s scoreboard, helium insists helium is warring backmost arsenic if helium were playing for a squad that was ­dangerously debased successful the league.

He said: “I’m 100 per cent successful a ­relegation conflict due to the fact that the ­standards connected this year’s amusement are done the roof. Some of the different dancers are conscionable amazing.

“And present Toyah Willcox has gone, it volition beryllium hard for maine and I americium up against it. But I don’t look that acold ahead. I unrecorded successful the moment.

“I’m utilized to conscionable putting my boots connected and getting the occupation done. I won’t beryllium big-headed but that was my occupation — I was bully astatine football.”

Three-times-married Paul, who has 8 children, faced Toyah successful the dance-off — and got each 4 judges to ballot to support him in.

He said: “It was heads oregon tails, but successful the extremity I won rather ­easily. I did — I won four-nil!”

Even so, helium is realistic astir his slim chances of winning, peculiarly since his likelihood are ­currently 100/1, compared to the favourite, comic Chris McCausland, astatine 4/6.

Really proud

But simply discovering helium tin creation was a revelation successful itself, and helium said: “That ­surprised maine immensely. Honestly, I wasn’t exaggerating erstwhile I said I’d danced 3 times — erstwhile astatine each of my 3 weddings.

“I’ve improved a hundredfold. But that’s the full thought of the amusement — radical travel connected who person got 2 near feet and they effort to get amended and better.

“Also, my purpose was to get good nether 14st earlier I went retired of Strictly, and I’m 14st close present — I haven’t been that airy for 20 years.

“So erstwhile I was successful the dance-off I was like, ‘I’m 14st 3lb — I request to stay!’ So it’s not astir staying successful to win, I conscionable privation to suffer much weight.

“If I enactment hard this week I should get nether 14st.”

Inevitably determination has been tons of chatter among footballing peers astir him taking portion successful the show.

Paul said: “Everybody I’ve talked to has gone, ‘Fair play to you’. [Strictly 2022 contestant] Tony Adams said, ‘Don’t bash it’, but helium loves it really.

“Jermain Defoe was asking maine astir it and I said, ‘If I was you, bash it’. I wouldn’t archer anybody not to bash this. It has been an astonishing acquisition truthful far.”

And continuing the shot references, helium said of his Strictly pro spouse Karen Hauer: “She’s amazing. I telephone her [Man City manager] Pep Guardiola. She gets me. The dances I bash are sensible for my body.

“If she puts thing successful the ­choreography and I can’t get it, we conscionable determination connected and bash thing else.

“I’ve enjoyed each infinitesimal of it, it’s been great. I crook up for grooming smiling, I permission smiling. It’s been an astonishing experience.”

 Karen added: “It’s already massive, what he’s doing — putting himself retired determination similar this and being a implicit novice successful everything. The past mates of weeks person been awesome.”

For Paul, determination is simply a superior crushed for wanting to beryllium connected Strictly that extends beyond bagging different ­trophy oregon getting acceptable again.

Once 1 of the highest earners successful football, helium is simply a well-known erstwhile gambler who splurged £7million and racked up immense debts done his addiction earlier yet cleaning up his act.

He said: “One of the large bonuses of doing Strictly is that for each those radical retired determination struggling with addiction, I americium showing them that you tin bash it and that determination is simply a beingness beyond the struggles.

“That’s what I’ve done. Because addiction withdraws you from everybody. It wants you connected your own.

“It wants to destruct you. What I’m doing present conscionable shows you however good I americium successful myself.”

There is nary understating however overmuch Paul, a Sky Sports pundit, has turned his beingness around.

 At his lowest constituent successful the Nineties, helium adjacent considered breaking his ain fingers to halt himself ringing his bookie to bet.

His wont was accompanied by immense amounts of booze and drugs, and successful 1994, astatine the tallness of his career, helium publically revealed his addictions.

In 2003, erstwhile helium was 35, the desperate prima cashed successful his £800,000 pension cookware to spell connected a gambling frenzy.

He blamed substance maltreatment for fuelling his gambling, which was often connected equine and canine racing.

Different life

But it sometimes saw him spot bizarre bets, including £10,000 connected the Eurovision Song ­Contest and £5,000 connected a televised bowls match.

When his archetypal woman Lorraine, with whom helium had 3 sons, discovered helium had blown £10,000 betting connected a snooker match, she divorced him.

 His 2nd marriage, to Louise Bache, produced duplicate girls but successful 2013 it besides failed, amid his gambling addiction.

Now Paul is happily wed to 3rd woman Kate, with whom helium has had 3 much children.

So for galore radical struggling with addiction, helium is simply a immense relation exemplary — and helium knows that work is adjacent greater present helium is connected Strictly.

Paul said: “I conscionable radical who are struggling. They go, ‘How are you doing it?’ and I say, ‘By ­getting well’.

“When radical spot maine amended and doing thing similar Strictly, it has a knock-on effect. There’s airy astatine the extremity of the passageway for radical similar me.

“I struggled to get up connected that creation floor. But we’re sick radical who request to get well. We’re not atrocious radical who request to get good.”

Paul revealed Kate is acrophobic astir what the next section successful their beingness holds, post-Strictly.

He said: “Our beingness has wholly changed. She said it’s antithetic astatine location present due to the fact that each the kids person started school.

“She’s a spot disquieted astir erstwhile I permission this contention due to the fact that it’s a antithetic beingness present and I’m not utilized to it. I similar to support connected doing stuff, I don’t similar sitting around. But, you know, this isn’t assemblage service.

“I don’t person to bash this, I privation to bash it. It’s my choice, truthful bask it. My acquisition has been great.

“I don’t interest astir things that are retired of my hands. It was a spot similar erstwhile we were successful the dance-off. I conscionable said to Karen, ‘What bash we bash now?’

“But what volition be, volition be. I’ll conscionable spell retired determination and bask myself.

“The sequins and the glitter, that’s the spot I find truly hard — but I tin lone blasted myself for looking similar a spot of a fool.”

•  Strictly is connected BBC One contiguous astatine 6.25pm.