Former footballer will have scan to check for signs of illness

FOOTBALL presenter Chris Kamara has revealed he is having a brain scan next week to check for signs of dementia.

The ex-Leeds United and Middlesbrough player made the admission on Steph’s Packed Lunch on Channel 4 yesterday.

It came as part of a discussion about former by MaTThEw younG

England striker Gary Lineker, 60, who admitted to dementia fears and committed to getting his brain tested this summer.

Football pundit Kamara, 63, said: “I’m going for a scan next Monday. We talked about it (dementia) on the programme (Steph’s Packed Lunch), I went home and she (wife Anne) said. ‘You’re all blasé aren’t you? You think you’ve had a fabulous career, if it all ended tomorrow, that would be fine.’

“She said, ‘What about the grandkids, what about me? Go and get it checked, there might be something you can do’.”

Kamara added: “It’s a precaution. It’s not part of the ageing process. Like loads of other people though you start to lose your memory, you think, ‘I’m getting old.’ It’s not a case of that. You’re there but you’re not there if you get dementia, which is horrible.”

Show presenter Steph McGovern asked Kamara whether he was worried about having the scan. He replied: “No. Like I say, I’ve had a great life.”

Research has found professional players are 3.5 times more likely to get the illness than the average person.

Kamara said he thought heading the ball should be banned in training for younger players but said it should not be banned from the game overall.

He said: “To ban it from the game would ruin the game. Football wouldn’t be football without heading.”