For many, Jermaine Pennant will always be the ultimate car-crash footballer.
He was the lad from the mean streets of Nottingham who was thrown a ?2million lifeline by Arsenal at the age of 15 and all but blew it.
He was the bad boy who ended up in prison for a drink-driving offence - when he was already banned - and had to play one match while wearing an electronic tag.
He was the troubled character who struggled to cope with the death of his mother and the jailing of his father for drug-dealing.
And he was the young man whose relationships with a series of young women never seemed to be out of the headlines.
Now, however, Stoke City winger Pennant insists that, at 28, the wild days are behind him.
And the reason for that is a six-month-old baby who has reached the parts of his father's psyche that have previously eluded great managers such as Arsene Wenger and Rafael Benitez, and helped Pennant to grow up.
'The baby is called Trey. He was born in a London hospital in August and Pennant says his arrival has, quite simply, changed his life. 'I am going to be there for my boy,' he says.
'He has so much to look forward to in life, I want him to do the right things and be a great kid. I'll do everything to give him what he needs and put him on the right track. I've made mistakes, all I can do now is pass on my advice to my son.
'Being a dad is great, it has changed my life. The moment Trey was born was fantastic. I was there, I filmed it. I cut the cord, I was as nervous as hell. I didn't know if I was cutting it too hard, whether he could feel it.
Young Gun: But Pennant failed to make an impact at Arsenal after his move from Notts County
'I do nappies, I feed him, the lot. I love it. His mum, Lara, thinks I'm the best dad in the world. He's a great boy, smart already just like his mum, definitely not like me!'
For those who felt that Pennant has wasted his talent for too long, his apparent transformation from football wastrel to responsible adult has been long overdue.
But Pennant's own upbringing in the Meadows district of Nottingham, an area notorious for drugs, gun crime and poverty, was far from ideal.
His mother died in 2003 and his father, Gary, a former semi-professional footballer, was a drug user who was jailed for four years in 2008 for dealing in crack cocaine and heroin. Far from disowning his father, however, Pennant touchingly credits him with being the first to spot his football talent and the two men remain close.
'My dad is proud of me, what I've achieved coming from that background,' says Pennant.
'He texted me after we beat Brighton last weekend in the FA Cup to say he'dread I was Man of the Match. It means a lot to me even now, doing him proud makes me happy.
'My dad told people I was going to be a good footballer. He first saw me kick a ball when I was six, on the beach in Bournemouth. He threw me a beach ball and I controlled it and kicked it back. He was like: 'Whoa, that's not normal for a kid'.
Bad boy: Pennant was jailed for three months on Tuesday after being convicted of drink-driving
'I watched him play in the local leagues but didn't like it. I would worry if he got tackled.'
Notts County spotted Pennant at 10 and cashed in shortly before his 16th birthday when Arsene Wenger paid a record ?2m to take him to Arsenal. Wenger had high hopes for him, but Pennant lacked the patience to make the grade.
He turned down club digs to stay with his aunt in north London, something Arsenal fretted about because they could not regulate his sleeping and dietary habits. Pennant admits now that he should not have gone to Highbury at such a young age.
'I left home too quick. I should have stayed at Notts County for at least another season,' he reasons.
'Playing in a competitive league at 16 and 17 would have helped me. But I was young and overwhelmed that Arsenal would pay a big transfer fee. I felt I had to go, but it was the wrong decision.
'London was a massive place for a kid on his own. As soon as a match was over, I'd be back to Nottingham on the train to see my friends and family. I couldn't get a sniff at Arsenal and became impatient.'
Far from exploding on to the scene, Pennant's demons threatened to burn him out before the age of 21.
He turned up late before one important England under-21 game, punched a Polish player during another, and turned up late to training.
Instead of playing regularly alongside Thierry Henry, Wenger sent him on loan to Watford and Leeds. Birmingham City eventually signed him, but he hit a new low in 2005 when he served 31 days of a three-month jail sentence for driving offences.
It said a lot for the faith of Birmingham manager Steve Bruce that Pennant bounced back from that to earn a ?6m move to Liverpool, where he played in the 2007 Champions League final defeat by Milan at the end of his first season.
He remains the only Englishman to have played in Europe's prestigious final who has never been picked by his country.
While Kieran Richardson, David Bentley and Shaun Wright-Phillips got their England chances, Pennant was frozen out. It still rankles with him. 'I've never been mentioned for England. Even playing in a Champions League final didn't mean anything,' says Pennant. 'Maybe the off-the-pitch incidents and misdemeanours have played a big part. Maybe that's why I am overlooked.
'But that's wrong. I'd be a responsible member of the England squad. I always work for the manager. 'I don't give [Stoke manager] Tony Pulis problems so why would I give Fabio Capello a problem? I'm not a person who goes into a dressing room and causes aggro.
Down and out: Pennant played in Liverpool's Champions League final defeat to Milan
'Sometimes, I'm a bit lively and bubbly, but that isn't a bad thing. I'm not disrespectful to people, I'm not rude to managers. I listen to what they say. I'd still like a chance for England.'
Where most right-wingers rely on pace (Theo Walcott) or crossing ability (David Beckham), Pennant has both in his armoury. It is why Pulis brought him back from a year in Spain with Real Zaragoza to supply the crosses for Kenwyne Jones and John Carew.
Pennant is proud to have played in such citadels of football as Barcelona's Nou Camp and against such icons of the game as Lionel Messi and Xavi Hernandez.
'I played Barcelona and Real Madrid, home and away,' he says. 'I think I touched the ball five times in an hour at the Nou Camp, the rest was spent chasing shadows. I needed an oxygen tank afterwards.
They were so good, I couldn't get near them. They were all good it seemed like they had 11 Messis. It was a great experience.'
Back home, Pennant ignores the fans who still taunt him about prison. He has tomorrow night's game against West Bromwich and an FA Cup quarter-final against West Ham to look forward to and his ambition is to play on long enough for baby Trey to watch him on the pitch.
'I want my son to be there to cheer me on,' says Pennant. 'That means I have to keep going for at least another five years. But if you see the right things on the pitch, you can carry on playing until you're grey. And I'm not grey yet!'
Well-travelled: Pennant has had a colourful career since leaving Notts County
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Source: Daily Mail
Source: Daily Mail