Liverpool legend Graeme Souness was on the verge of tears this morning while supporting a young girl living with a disease described ‘as bad as it gets’.
The Scotsman appeared on Good Morning Britain with hosts Susanna Reid and Ed Balls to discuss the skin condition epidermolysis bullosa (EB), for which he has started a charity called DEBRA.
Sitting to Souness’s right was a 13-year-old girl called Jasmine Ritchie living with the disease causing her skin to blister and tear at the slightest itch. Her mother, also perched on the sofa, has just completed a trek up Mount Kilimanjaro in order to raise money for those living with the horrifying condition.
Asked why it’s so important to help children suffering with EB, an emotional Souness explained: ‘There’s lots of terrible, terrible conditions and diseases out there but I believe EB is as bad as it gets.
‘Jasmine’s born with this condition and I believe every day of her life is an up-hill struggle. Every day is Groundhog Day, every day is filled with pain and itches. There’s no respite from it.’
With a tear in his eye, the 72-year-old added: ‘Her (Jasmine’s) hair looks beautiful today and in makeup before the show they were doing her ponytail but her mum Anna forgot to tell them that she’s got wounds on her head.
‘I was standing next to Anna (Jasmine’s mum) and she burst into tears. I thought, “what’s happened?” But Jasmine didn’t complain.
‘I’ve been on here before with another child suffering with the same disease. I come from a world of winners and people who never back off anything. But on a scale of courage and being a winner, footballers are a one out of 10. These young people are a 10 out of 10.’
Those who suffer with EB, also know as butterfly disease, have skin so thin that even the tiniest impact could be life-altering.
It means they live in almost constant agony when walking, showering, eating or getting dressed because simple activities can rip their skin.
This morning’s appearance was not Souness’s first on GMB discussing the terrible disease however. Two years ago he went on the show to support a young Scottish girl named Isla Grist.
And writing a couple of days later in Daily Mail Sport, Souness described EB as ‘the cruellest’ condition he’s ever seen.
‘When we appeared on BBC Breakfast, discussing the skin condition which makes every day a huge challenge for her, she said in a matter-of-fact way that there were “other people with challenges too”. Typical Isla. Always making light of the cards she’s been dealt and the difficulty of getting through every day,’ the former Rangers midfielder wrote.
‘She’s 14 and has Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a life-threatening skin condition also known as ‘butterfly skin’, which causes her body to blister and tear. It means hours of applying creams and, three to four times a week, the pain of changing her dressings.
‘I can say this without any doubt at all: I’ve never witnessed a crueller condition. I’m a vice-president of the charity Debra, which is raising awareness of the condition and fundraising — and which will soon be lobbying the Government for help.
‘I’m sad to say that we currently have no Government help for the children who are suffering with this condition.
‘It’s also been my privilege to meet Isla’s mother and father, Rachael and Andy, at their home in Inverness. There are times when Andy and I talk, as two fathers, and my heart breaks for him, carrying that desperation for a way to make his daughter’s life that bit better.
‘I had quite a serious operation 30 years ago, and yet have been able to enjoy exactly the same quality of life that I had before it. But for people like Isla, the quality of life is miserable.
‘She’s living with a recessive disease, which means she must take a cocktail of the strongest of drugs — Diamorphine, Fentanyl and Ketamine — on a daily basis to try to get some pain relief.’
Souness has so far raised millions in support of EB through his charity DEBRA.
He’s completed multiple challenges to help fundraise, including two 21-mile swims across the English channel. His first crossing, in 2023, saw Souness raise more than £1.5million for those living with the disease.
