Paul Gascoigne

"Gazza" redirects here. For other uses, see Gazza (disambiguation).

Paul Gascoigne
Gascoigne in 2021
Personal information
Full name Paul John Gascoigne[1]
Date of birth (1967-05-27) 27 May 1967 (age 57)[1]
Place of birth Gateshead, England
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.77 m)[1]
Position(s) Attacking midfielder
Youth career
1980–1985 Newcastle United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1985–1988 Newcastle United 92 (21)
1988–1992 Tottenham Hotspur 92 (19)
1992–1995 Lazio 43 (6)
1995–1998 Rangers 74 (30)
1998–2000 Middlesbrough 41 (4)
2000–2002 Everton 32 (1)
2002 Burnley 6 (0)
2003 Gansu Tianma 4 (2)
2004 Boston United 4 (0)
Total 388 (83)
International career
1987–1988 England U21 12 (5)
1989 England B 4 (1)
1988–1998 England 57 (10)
Managerial career
2005 Kettering Town
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Paul John Gascoigne (/ˈɡæskɔɪn/, born 27 May 1967), nicknamed Gazza, is an English former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.[2] Regarded as one of the best playmakers of his generation[3] and one of the best English footballers of all time,[4][5] Gascoigne is described by the National Football Museum as "widely recognised as the most naturally talented English footballer of his generation".[6] Gascoigne was immensely popular during his playing career, with television broadcaster Terry Wogan calling him "probably the most popular man in Britain today" in September 1990, and public interest in and adoration for him came to be known as "Gazzamania".[7][8]

Born and raised in Gateshead, Gascoigne signed schoolboy terms with Newcastle United before turning professional with the club in 1984. Three years later, he was sold to Tottenham Hotspur for £2.2 million. He won the FA Cup with Spurs in 1991 before being sold to Italian club Lazio for £5.5 million. In 1995, he was transferred to Rangers for £4.3 million and helped the club to two league titles, a Scottish Cup and a Scottish League Cup. He returned to England in a £3.4 million move to Middlesbrough in 1998. He debuted in the Premier League in the 1998–99 season, having already featured in the 1998 Football League Cup final. He switched to Everton in 2000 and later had spells with Burnley, Gansu Tianma and Boston United.

Gascoigne represented the England national team from 1988 to 1998, in which he was capped 57 times and scored ten goals. He was part of the England team that reached fourth place in the 1990 FIFA World Cup, where he famously cried after receiving a yellow card in the semi-final with West Germany, which meant he would have been suspended for the final had England won the game. He also helped the team to the semi-finals of Euro 96, which included scoring a goal against Scotland, described in 2013 as "one of the most iconic goals in the game's recent history".[9] He has been involved in a number of high-profile goal celebrations at both club and international level, including the "dentist's chair" celebration from Euro 96, and mimicking playing the flute with Rangers in 1998, a reference to the Protestant Orange Order.[10][11]

In the later part of his career, and especially following retirement, Gascoigne's life became dominated by severe mental and emotional problems, particularly alcoholism. He has been jailed or sectioned on numerous occasions, and his struggles receive regular coverage in the British press. He has frequently attempted to live without alcohol, though rehabilitation programmes have provided only temporary relief. His issues ended his coaching career, and he has not worked in football since being dismissed as the manager of Kettering Town in 2005.

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Paul John Gascoigne was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Dawson, Alan. "Goal.com's Top 50 English Players: Paul Gascoigne (14)". Goal. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Top ten: The best 1990s playmakers (ft. Gazza)". Football365. 22 April 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Ranked! The 25 best English players ever". FourFourTwo. 11 June 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2023.
  5. ^ "England's Best: The 50 Greatest to Have Ever Worn the 'Three Lions'". BleacherReport. Retrieved 5 March 2023.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference nfm was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Paul Gascoigne and Gazzamania: From Italia 90 to Euro 96, how one player changed English football". FourFourTwo. 17 May 2020. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  8. ^ "Remembering Gazzamania: How Paul Gascoigne helped change English football forever". 90min. 27 May 2020. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  9. ^ Campbell, Paul (13 August 2013). "From the Vault: Paul Gascoigne's wondergoal against Scotland at Euro 96". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  10. ^ "Football's best and worst goal celebrations". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference rangers20 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).