Graeme Souness swimming English Channel for charity after leaving Sky Sports role

An emotional Graeme Souness has revealed he is swimming the English Channel to help people with the rare skin disease Epidermolysis bullosa.

The former Liverpool and Scotland captain, who has just left his punditry role with Sky Sports after 15 years, fought back tears as he described the pain and suffering the disease causes children.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Mail Sport columnist Souness, 70, said: ‘It’s the most horrible disease. If you are inflicted by this you should wake up every morning and say ‘why me?’

‘It’s a desperate situation. And then parents have to deal with that. And that’s why we do it.

‘I got involved because of how serious this disease is. If people haven’t experienced it, or seen it, you have no idea how desperate this thing is.’

Former Liverpool and Scotland footballer Graeme Souness will swim the English Channel to raise money for charities supporting those suffering from Epidermolysis bullosa

Souness will take on the 21-mile Channel challenge next month with Andy Grist, the father of a 14-year-old girl, Isla, who suffers from the condition.

Souness will swim 21 miles across the Channel on June 18 to raise funds for the charity DEBRA, which supports people with illness.

He wants to raise at least £1.1million, as he wears No 11 on the football field.

Souness was filmed chatting with Isla Grist, a 14-year-old girl who needed plastic surgery on her hands due to a degenerative disease.

Isla described the agony of even having her bandages changed on her hands, leaving Souness almost speechless at her bravery.

Souness’ dad plus Isla, Andy, and four others will race between Dover and Calais next month and a fundraising page has been set up on the DEBRA website.

‘Isla is just the bravest person I’ve ever met,’ added Souness. ‘When I’m with him, I cry a lot.

‘She just inspires me, she is just unbelievably courageous and brave.’

The crossing can take up to 16 hours to swim but Souness said: ‘I wanted to do something that could make a difference to Isla’s life and the lives of so many other people living in EB, and the idea was quite crazy. of swimming the English Channel is suggested.

‘Now I’m not one to shy away from a challenge, but this is new to me; despite living by the sea for the past 16 years, I’ve never been here, so this must be the hardest challenge I’ve ever tackled.

But I was determined to complete the swim. Together with Isla’s dad, Andy, and the rest of the team, we will complete the challenge and in doing so raise awareness of EB and support to find the treatments that are so desperately needed.’