Gazza 'spending £2,000 a day on cocaine'

Reports have claimed that Paul Gascoigne was spending £2,000 a day on cocaine before he was sectioned under the Mental Health Act last week.

According to The Mirror, the former England footballer is suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder and believes the IRA and White House are "after him".

Gascoigne has also reportedly given drug dealers his bank cards to cash points and paid taxi firms to deliver whiskey and vodka to his hotel room in Newcastle.

A police source commented: "Because of Gazza's obsessive compulsive disorder he became transfixed with the numbers 19 and 16.

"He was spending up to £2,000 a day on cocaine. One individual could not snort that amount of the drug.

"In fact, he was sorting out 35 lines but would only take his favourite line numbers 16 and 19. Then he was throwing the rest away, which must have been costing him thousands.

"His paranoia is a common effect of the drug. He claimed the IRA were after him, which dates back to when he played for Rangers and pretended to play the flute at a match. He was also convinced the NYPD, FBI and White House were after him."