John Scales: ‘I punched a hole in the wall when I had to leave Liverpool’

The former England defender talks of how Alan Sugar and a smoke alarm changed a career that took him from Wimbledon to Anfield to Spurs

The Fox and Grapes sits just off Wimbledon Common. Tucked down a side street, it is now a posh gastropub with pints for £5.75 and well-groomed dogs adorning the floor. It has not always been this way. John Scales sits in a quiet corner in the back, describing the eve of the 1988 FA Cup final and how the Wimbledon team arrived to let off steam the night before facing Liverpool.

Related: 14 May 1988: The first FA Cup final penalty save

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