How Argyle played a role in Merson taking Walsall job

EX-FOOTBALLER turned Strictly Come Dancing star Paul Merson made his name winning trophies with Arsenal and starring for England in the 1990s - but his ill-fated career as a manager proved less successful.

- EDD MOORE

Merson made more than 400 appearances for the Gunners and played 21 times for his country - but highprofile battles with alcohol, cocaine and gambling addictions saw his career spiral.

After stints with Middlesbrough, Aston Villa and Portsmouth, Merson (pictured) found himself at second-tier Walsall for the 2003/04 season. And after missing a chunk of the season while checked into rehab in America he explained how a chain of events triggered by the form of title-bound Division Two outfit Plymouth Argyle ended up thrusting him into his “dream” job as a football manager.

Writing in a 2011 autobiography, Merson detailed the strange twist of fate that saw him take the reins at Walsall in March 2004.

He had been brought to the Midlands club by Colin Lee, a lifelong Argyle fan who used to stand on the terraces of Home Park’s Barn Park End to cheer on the Greens as a child. And when high-flying Argyle lost manager Paul Sturrock to Premier LeagueSouthampton, Devon -born Lee apparently became tempted by the possibility of a move to the soon-to-be-promoted Pilgrims.