NO doubt a few of today's top professional footballers found it difficult to suppress a chuckle on hearing George Best's verdict on them.

The words pot, kettle and black come to mind after his appearance on Talk Radio claiming many of his successors were overpaid, lazy millionaires, tempted to drink heavily or dabble with drugs because football does not give them a big enough "buzz".

"Footballers today are millionaires by the time they're 22 or 23. More and more of them are going out and looking for something to give them a buzz outside football, be it gambling, drugs or booze," said Best.

"It seems that because they're on big money the game isn't giving them the buzz they need any more.

"I was on peanuts when I first got into the first team. I was earning four pounds, one shilling and ninepence, but money wasn't important to me."

Ah yes but when George was a lad and one of the greatest footballers I've ever seen you could have 10 pints of mild in the pub, a champagne night out at Stringfellow's, 20 Woodbines, a fish and chips supper and still have enough change out of half a crown to take Miss World home in a taxi.

Mind you, George already knows that. Isn't it how he spent most of his Friday nights . . .

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.