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Football at the highest level is a very physically demanding sport. That's why players have got their fitness and training regimes locked down. They need to be extremely athletic and energetic to be able to last 90 minutes on a football pitch amid professionals.
Smoking is an unhealthy habit and it is frowned upon a lot. Athletes are known for adopting healthy lifestyles and one wouldn't expect a top tier footballer to be smoking sticks during training breaks. But as surprising as it may be, some very recognizable and world-class footballers are smokers.
Back in the day it wasn't a big deal. Managers used to smoke in the dugout, players could be seen lighting one up after a game. But the optics attached to being caught smoking these days don't do these players much of a favour.
On that note, let's take a look at five active world-class footballers who smoke.
#5 Radja Nainggolan
Former Belgian international Radja Nainggolan is a dynamic midfielder who could contribute on both sides of the pitch. The heavily tatted former Belgian international excels as a deep-lying playmaker and his passing, vision and shooting are all exemplary.
Being a player who has shown so much energy whenever he's on the pitch all throughout his career, it is quite surprising that Nainggolan is a smoker.
Current Vasco da Gama centre-back Leandro Castan, who shared a dressing room with Nainggolan during their time together at Roma, once discussed the latter's smoking habits. He said:
"He's a fine player, but unfortunately he'd get into a lot of controversy.
"When he was at Roma, he'd leave the dressing room to have a smoke with the assistant manager, he did what he pleased and wouldn't care what people would think of it.'
"But he would then go and deliver on the pitch, where it matters. It was great to play alongside him."
#4 Wojciech Szczęsny
Juventus goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny got into trouble during his time at Arsenal after being caught smoking in the shower. He was fined £20,000 by Arsene Wenger. But it didn't end there as the goalkeeper was caught smoking by papparazis in his home country Poland.
Szczesny though, doesn't think much of it. In an interview with the Independent, he revealed:
“I never got caught. I admitted to it when I was asked if it was me in London but the second one was bulls***."
#3 Mario Balotelli
Mario Balotelli could have been one of the finest strikers of his generation. He seemed well on course to becoming that a decade ago. But the Italian currently plies his trade for Turkish Super Lig club Adana Demirspor.
Balotelli has been caught smoking a number of times. He was caught smoking minutes before his Brescia debut against Juventus. Balotelli was snapped smoking a cigarette during his extremely underwhelming spell at Liverpool prior to that as well.
The striker is infamous for his devil-may-care attitude, which many believe is just an indication of Balotelli's lack of discipline. He has played for six different clubs since 2015 and has never really been able to hit the heights expected of him.
#2 Gianluigi Buffon
Well, you could excuse the goalkeeper for taking a drag or two every once in a while, right? After all, he doesn't need to do a lot of running and spends a large amount of his time on the pitch all by himself.
Gianluigi Buffon is one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. The World Cup winner is 43-years-old but is still playing. He is currently captaining his childhood club Parma who are presently in Serie B.
Buffon has been snapped smoking multiple times. But it doesn't seem to have done any damage to the legendary goalkeeper's career as he is still going strong at the age of 43. Rarely do players play past 40 let alone perform at a high level. But Gigi Buffon has been doing exactly that.
#1 Marco Verratti
Italian midfielder Marco Verratti is one of the best in the business at his position. The diminutive central midfielder is agile, technically adept and is one of the most creative playmakers today.
The 29-year-old has been lauded throughout his career for his sheer natural ability. His constant injury issues have played a hand in him not attaining legendary status. But there's also an argument that Verratti's work-ethic and lifestyle away from the pitch has contributed to that.
Speaking to speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, French football journalist Julien Laurens discussed Verratti's lifestyle choices after PSG's win against Manchester United in 2019. The midfielder performed brilliantly in the game but it forced Laurens to ask what he could achieve if he had the work-ethic of, say, Cristiano Ronaldo.
"For me Verratti, because he was not fit, because he was not 100 percent, because he's only played one game in the last month.
"Last week he was partying until 6am for Neymar's birthday, because he smokes, because he drinks because he's out almost every day of the week. When he comes out with a game like this tonight at Old Trafford I think it's just sensational.
"I think if he had the lifestyle of Cristiano Ronaldo, for example, the work ethic of him, I don't where he would be in terms of world-class midfielders. But the ability he has combined with the lifestyle that he has at the moment and yet still being able to put out a performance like tonight is just incredible."
