Leeds United midfielder David Batty yesterday revealed how he has played for almost a year with a heart problem.
The England midfielder, banned from the Euro 2000 play-off against Scotland, damaged his heart when he broke his ribs last December.
He battled back to fitness and takes steroids to keep the illness under control but he kept his condition secret from his international team-mates for 11 months.
Batty said: "I broke my ribs a while ago and banged my heart at the same time.
"I've got pericarditis, which anyone who has a heart or chest problem will know about, and it means I've got to take steroids and other stuff because it keeps coming back."
Batty broke his ribs against Coventry in his first game back at Leeds after a £4.4 million move from Newcastle last year.
He was out for three months and admitted his great fear was not being able to play again. But the Yorkshire-man fought his way back into the Leeds team.
Batty also returned to the England team after the injury but a red card against Poland in September ruled him out of the two-legged play-off clash with the Scots.
He says the pericarditis is "not very serious" but, speaking on BBC radio, Batty explained his initial fears when he discovered his heart had been damaged.
He said: "It's a bit unsettling and obviously very worrying when you get something like this and don't know what it is.
"When I first found out all the signs pointed to me having heart problems it was a bit unnerving."
The illness means the pericardium sac, which forms the outer covering of the heart, has become inflamed and can constrict the heart.
Batty's world was rocked by the diagnosis but the 30-year-old says family life has helped him settle down in recent years and given him a new outlook on life.
Batty said: "I've settled down a lot and, now I've got a family, I hardly ever go out with the lads.
"My family are everything to me and I'm proud of my kids. I always do what's best for them and I'll take any opportunity to make them happy.
"Unlike some people, I can turn off from football. I know people think I'm a bit of a hard-man on the pitch but I'd like the kids to see me as a bit of a softie off it."
