Cops' sniffer dogs had beef with ace

THE footie legend was once stopped by US cops on the way back from rehab in 2013 - due to his love of beef jerky.

- BY JEREMY ARMSTRONG

Gazza had bought 20 packets of the dried meat to take home to the UK when he was surrounded by police at the airport in Arizona.

He recalled: "There was a funny end to the rehab. I love beef jerky so I bought 20 packets to take home.

"But when I got the airport, I was stopped by the police and they ordered me to get down.

They had sniffer dogs and I was, like, 'Whoa, what are you doing?' They thought I had drugs. The dogs were sniffing around my bags for beef jerky."

Gazza's dad John was waiting for him at Heathrow but the star, who had a fear of flying, took too many of the pills given to him to deal with his phobia.

He ended up in Mexico with a fellow addict he met at rehab. "I had to call my dad to explain," Gazza said. "I wasn't sure where I was or how I ended up there."

which doctors said had kept him alive during the 2013 scare.