Chopra tells of his £2 million gambling losses

Ipswich Town striker Michael Chopra has revealed the extent of his gambling addiction, estimating he has lost as much as £2m through betting.
The 27-year-old, who has been receiving treatment for the illness, says he was gambling as much as £20,000 a day.
And he has even admitted to playing with injuries in the past in order to collect his appearance fee.
"I have probably lost between £1.5m and £2m on gambling," he told Sky Sports News.
"Your first bet's your worst bet. As the years have come along and I've earned more money I've started to gamble more.
"I was gambling up to £20,000 a day at times. As soon as I'd step over the white line I would focus on football - but as soon as I got to the dressing room I would check my phone to see if I'd won.
"As a gambler you want to be playing to get the appearance money. I was playing through injury to cover a debt."
Chopra, who has fought the addiction throughout the majority of his career, said his £5m transfer from Cardiff to Sunderland in 2007 was motivated by his desire to collect a signing on fee to pay off gambling arrears.
"In my first season at Cardiff I had a gambling debt from when I was at Newcastle," explained the former England Under-21 international.
"I had to leave Cardiff and sign for another team to pay that debt off."
Chopra, who has amassed 92 goals in 265 league games for Newcastle, Watford, Nottingham Forest, Barnsley, Cardiff, Sunderland and Ipswich, checked into the Sporting Chance rehabilitation clinic in early October.
But Ipswich boss Paul Jewell has said he will continue to play the forward, who insists he is focused on his career at Portman Road.
"The main thing now is to get promoted with Ipswich. They've backed me and I want to pay them back," he said.

Alcohol and gambling 2 things that can ruin people's lives. Had experience of both with family and friends and it's a lose lose situation with both, it's hard enough to make a decent living these days without the pressure of booze or gambling added into the mix. 2 family members have lost almost everything that was dear to them in the last 3 months, one of them has split with his wife a matter of 6 weeks ago because of his boozing on the weekends spending most of the housekeeping and being so hungover that he would fail to turn out for work until the Wednesday (more money lost), he'd get paid every Friday and go straight to the pub and blow between £150-£200 on booze and slot machines, the other was planning to marry his partner this September just gone, but she called it off and asked him to leave because he was getting money from anywhere and everywhere, he was taking money from the house that was set aside for their son and run up about £10,000 of debt as well, needless to say he's now lost everything that was dear to him and lives with his dad in a 1 bed flat.
Gambling only pays when your winning..never have truer words been spoken.