EX-Inter star claims he was drinking up to 70beers a night during darkest period

Former Inter Milan midfielder Fredy Guarin has opened up on his battles with alcohol and depression.

Guarin - who retired in 2021 - said in a recent interview with Radio Caracol that he was drinking up to 70 beers per night at one point when he was based in Brazil with Vasco da Gama.

The 38-year-old was already experiencing issues with alcohol before he left Inter to join Shanghai Shenhua in 2016, but the ex-Colombia star began drinking a lot more heavily following his move to China.

'From the first day I arrived in China, I became a real alcoholic,' he recalled.

'I would get up to train, then straight after that go to drink. I'd rest a little, train, then drink. Every day was like that.

'I started to get better in Brazil, I felt like the happiest man in the world for six months, but then the pandemic hit.'

Guarin joined Vasco da Gama in September 2019 after four years in China. He had previously played for Inter, Porto and Saint-Etienne in Europe, as well as Envigado and Atletico Huila in his native Colombia.

Brazil went into lockdown in early 2020 due to the global outbreak of COVID. With training and matches suspended, life turned dark for Guarin and almost ended completely.

'I would drink 50, 60, 70 beers in one night,' he explained. 'I totally lost control, would hang out in the Favelas, I was seeking out danger and adrenaline. I had a run of 10 days in a row being completely drunk, I woke up with a beer at my side.

'I lived in the 17th floor of an apartment building and I was so detached from reality that I jumped off a balcony. Fortunately, there was a net underneath and it bounced me back, but I didn't even realise it. I had no idea what I was doing.

'I realised then that if I got drunk again, I would die. I hope that my testimony can reach many corners of the world, touch many hearts and save some lives.'

Big things were expected of Guarin when he arrived at Porto in 2008.

He had been touted as a 'wonderkid' on the Football Manager video game.

While his real-life success did not quite live up to his virtual hype, he won nine trophies with Porto - including the 2010-11 edition of the UEFA Europa League.

Guarin moved to Inter in January 2012 and it was in Italy that his problematic drinking began.

He added: 'I started getting a name for myself in Italy and that is also where a different issue started off the pitch.

'Initially, I dealt with it pretty well, as I'd get drunk two days before a game, then play, score one or two goals, the team would win. I think it all started from a lack of understanding.

'I would drink at home, in nightclubs, at the restaurant. I already had a family and that was so bad, because I knew full well that what I was doing was wrong. I failed in every objective, football and personal, because I felt like I had no limits.

'I was so swept up in alcohol that they told me via my agent that I could no longer stay in Milan. The club warned I had to be taken away from there, right now.'