Graeme Souness has revealed he has become an atheist after witnessing the effects of a life-limiting skin condition on children.
The Scotland legend became a campaigner for people suffering with epidermolysis bullosa (EB) after learning about the condition at a charity dinner five years ago.
He said: “I am now an atheist because I cannot believe there is an almighty that would allow this to happen to one person.”
EB – also known as “butterfly skin” – is an incurable condition that causes painful blisters and tears from any friction to the skin.
Souness, 70, is vice-president of Debra – which supports people with EB – and has helped raise more than £500,000. He said: “It’s the most evil and cruellest of all diseases. It just robs these young people of any quality of life.”
Souness has become close to Isla Grist, 14, and her family, of the Black Isle, near Inverness.
Speaking on the Up Front podcast, he added: “My little girl, she’s not my little girl but I’ve become very close to her, Isla, and it’s like someone has taken a torch to their skin.
“It’s life-limiting for these poor children and it’s not just the sufferers but also the families who have to deal with it, which is traumatic to say the least. And it has changed me as a human being.”
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