Wine is Best for breakfast

Staring miserably into space, George Best drank four glasses of wine before noon yesterday - drowning his sorrows over the apparent collapse of his marriage.

As his wife Alex holidayed with friends in Spain without her wedding ring, he headed straight to a bar in Malta at 10.20am.

Within 15 minutes of arriving, the soccer legend had consumed two £1.50 glasses of Green Label dry white wine while slumped inside at a table.

Then he took a seat next to a children's hobby horse outside and ordered another glass, which he drank alone while gazing blankly ahead of him - swallowing half of it in one gulp.

Later, Best returned inside, where he ordered a £2 toasted sandwich and a fourth glass of wine - meaning he consumed the equivalent of almost a bottle within 90 minutes. That i s despite having special stomach implants which are supposed to make him feel ill when he drinks.

The 57- year- old alcoholic has been 'distraught' since Sunday, after 31-year-old Alex returned to Britain in tears following revelations that he had tried to strike up a relationship with a crop-headed blonde he met at his local

pub in Walton on the Hill, Surrey. Alex later flew out to the Costa del Sol with a group of friends.

One customer who saw Best at the bar in the resort of Sliema yesterday said: 'He seemed to have the weight of the world on his shoulders. He is like a shadow of his former self and just kept sighing as he sat there.'

By contrast, Alex - who nursed Best back to health following his life-saving liver transplant a year ago - was described by onlookers as seeming as though a 'great weight had been lifted from her shoulders' as she sunbathed with three of her friends in Spain.

She is said to be 'hurt, betrayed and angry' and has insisted that her marriage is over after 25-year-old Paula Shapland claimed Best kissed her and told her he wanted a divorce.

His agent and friend Phil Hughes has now flown out to Malta on a mercy mission to see the ex-Manchester United star - who has been staying at the £200-a-night Crowne Plaza hotel - amid renewed fears for his health.

After his early drinking session yesterday, Best returned to the hotel at midday, where he tried to revive himself with several cold showers and a dip in the pool. At one point, he slumped backwards in the shallow end with his head resting on the edge and his eyes shut.

But he seemed unable to keep still and continually moved from sunbed to shower to pool and back again.

He looked tired as he slowly walked around the pool, occasionally stopping to talk to other holidaymakers, and pointing out to one blonde tourist that she needed more suncream.

One member of staff described how Best told him: 'I can't do anything without the Press following me. I can't even have a glass of wine without them reporting that I'm back on the booze again.'

A source close to Best said he has not spoken to Alex since she left, adding: 'He is completely distraught.'

Alex's mother, Cheryl Pursey, said her daughter is still undecided about whether to divorce her errant husband. 'She's gone abroad to think and decide what she wants to do. It may happen, but we just don't know.'

Professor Roger Williams, who carried out the ex-footballer's liver transplant operation, said he is worried about him and will want to see him when he returns to Britain. He thinks the stomach implants are coming to the end of their lifespan, which is why they are not reacting to the alcohol.