The Inebriant Paul Gascoigne

 

Paul John Gascoigne aka Gazza was born on 27th of May 1967 in Dunston, Gateshead, England. He started his football carrier for the youth team of Newcastle United where he captained and lifted the FA Youth cup after scoring twice against Watford. It was the start which all footballers dream about and it dint stop there. After dedicating 5 years for the youth side Gazza got a call for the senior side. Gazza had a good spell with Newcastle but after 91 appearances and scoring 21 goals, many top clubs including Manchester United were interested in signing Gascoigne. He wanted to sign for Liverpool but since there was no offer from them he signed for Tottenham Hotspur for a record £2.3 million.  Sometimes a wrong signing changes not only your carrier but also your life. His Tottenham tenure started off with a bang under Terry Venables where he helped the side finishing 6^th and 3^rd respectively. Gascoigne helped the club to a FA Cup Final in which he sustained an injury.

During his spell at White Heart Lane, Sir Bobby Robson called upon Gascoigne during a friendly against Denmark. He started playing for England on regular basis. He came in the lime light when he played in the 1990 World cup against Czechoslovakia where he scored a goal and was part of the other three goals. England won that match 4-2 and Gascoigne silenced all his critics with that performance.

 

At the same time Lazio was keeping an eye on Gazza and signed him for £5.5 million. The only high point in Lazio was when he scored against AS Roma in the 89^th minute. In 1993 he broke his cheekbone and then a leg injury that kept him out for most of the season. During that time, it was rumored that Gazza contacted Sir Alex Ferguson for a move back to England and to join Man Utd but Ferguson rejected the offer.

 

In July 1995, Gazza signed for Rangers for £4.3 million. He won the Scottish League with The Gers .He scored a hat-trick against Aberdeen after going 1-0 down. This was definitely one of the highest point in his carrier. He got married the following year with Sheryl Failes in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. It was the same year which he won the Scottish Cup and was named ‘The Player of the Year’ and won the Scottish League for their ninth season in succession.

 

Gascoigne was fined £20,000 by Rangers in 1998 when he mimicked playing a flute which is offensive to Roman Catholics. His life was then threatened by the

IRA (Provisional Irish Republican Army) for six months.

An exit from Rangers seemed certain for Gazza . After 74 appearances and 30 goals for the club, it was time to move on. Where other than back to the Premiere League.

 

Gazza was busy with the World Cup where he was picked on regular basis by England’s coach Glenn Hoddle. But soon due to disciplinary problem he was not chosen the final squad. He won 57 caps for England and scored 10 goal in his international carrier.

 

It had been a decade since Paul John Gascoigne set foot on English soil. It became a possibility when he joined Middlesbrough for £3.4 million. He helped Middlesbrough get promoted to the the premiere league after coming runners-up to Nottingham Forest. Everything wasn’t all well as he got divorced and his personal problems increased day by day which effected his playing for Boro. After just 41 appearances, Gazza left  Middlesbrough for Evertion in Liverpool where he was re-united with his former boss Walter Smith. He scored just 1 goal in 32 appearances and in 2002 it was time to say goodbye to Everton.

America was calling and Gascoigne went on trail with D.C United , but the deal never became permanent . He had short spells with Chinese club Gansu Tianma  , Wolverhampton Wanderers and  Boston United as player-coach, but nothing materialized.

 

Football was his passion and alcohol was his poison. How different would the world have seen Paul John Gascoigne only if he had joined Manchester United instead of Tottenham Hotspur.