Former England footballer Jimmy Greaves has made a full recovery after suffering a stroke, it emerged today.
The 72-year-old former Tottenham star spent two nights in hospital and underwent neck surgery after falling ill at his home in Chelmsford, Essex.
He has lost a stone in weight but has now been discharged and says he is feeling as fit as ever.
Greaves said he had gone to A&E after feeling ill and was told he had suffered a stroke.
He told the People; 'I had a mini-stroke but just weeks later I'm honestly feeling better than I have in years - I'm as fit as a butcher's dog.'
Doctors at Chelmsford's Broomfield Hospital discovered the football columnist, who is England's third-greatest scorer with 44 goals, had suffered a transient ischaemic attack.
They performed a successful operation on an artery in his neck before giving him the all-clear.
Greaves added: 'I'm out and about, enjoying life to the full. I lost a stone, which I needed to do and it's made me feel a lot younger.
'If anyone complains about the NHS don't believe a word of it. The people who looked after me couldn't have been any more professional or caring'.
Greaves was a prolific goalscorer for club and country. He played for Chelsea, AC Milan, Tottenham and West Ham, scoring 357 games in 516 games.
After retiring from football in 1971 he fought a lengthy battle with alcohol.
He wrote in his autobiography: 'I lost the 70s completely.
'They passed me by. I was drunk from 1972 to 1977. On occasions I would drink up to 20 pints of beer in the course of a day, go home, then drink a whole bottle of vodka before going to bed.
'Id put a bottle of vodka by my bed so I could have a drink as soon as I woke up.
'One day, 28 February 1978, I thought, "I can't do this any more".
'I haven't had a drink since. Long may it continue, though there's no guarantees.'
Greaves had been due to play in the 1966 World Cup quarter final but suffered a leg injury during a game against France and had to be replaced.
It led to Geoff Hurst taking his place for the rest of the tournament.'