TLegendary Wales coach John Benjamin Toshack is going through a difficult personal time after it was revealed he has dementia, which gradually affects his memory and cognitive abilities. The news was revealed through his son Cameron Toshack, who explained what the former coach’s daily life is like in an interview with the Daily Mail. The main decline is in short-term memory, Cameron said. Even if they were able to have a conversation in the morning, several hours later they would not remember having had the conversation.
If we spoke in the afternoon, you may not remember that we also spoke in the morning
Nevertheless, there is a surprising contrast. Toshack has very accurate memories related to football, especially from his time as a player for Liverpool and as a coach for teams such as Real Madrid. His son insists that he can still analyze past matches in tactical detail as if he had recently experienced them.
“If you ask him about his time at Liverpool, San Sebastian and Madrid, the details are amazing. The other day he told me about the match between Real Madrid and Milan under Sacchi, and how they modified the midfield to deal with Marco van Basten. It’s like yesterday’s game,” he explained.
He spoke to me the other day about the match between Real Madrid and Sacchi’s Milan, and how he modified his midfield to deal with Van Basten.
“This is a terrible disease. We see it in short-term memory. I talk to him almost every day, but if we talk in the afternoon, he might not even remember that we talked in the morning,” Cameron added. He also noted that his father has alternated between better days and more complicated days during this battle.
Toshack, 77 years old, left a deep mark on European football. As a player, he was one of Liverpool’s main players in the 1970s, winning multiple titles. He went on to have an extensive career in the dugout, coaching clubs such as Real Madrid and Real Sociedad, as well as the Wales national team.
His appearance is still highly regarded in the soccer world, and this news is sure to provoke many reactions. Today, far from the spotlight and the dugout, Toshack faces the toughest match of his life.
