Focus On : Paul Gascoigne : "Gazza The Real Me"

 Arguably the best footballer of his generation, mercurial was a word that could have been invented to describe Paul Gascoigne. After his crucial, but ultimately tearful contribution to England’s 1990 World Cup in Italy, “Gazza” became a household name. And going into the 1991 FA Cup Final for Tottenham against Nottingham Forest, the Gateshead midfielder had signed an £8.5m deal to join Italian Serie A side Lazio. But disaster struck when he wildly challenged Gary Charles, which resulted in him rupturing the cruciate ligaments in his right knee, so he was forced to postpone the move until the following summer.

But he eventually moved to the Italian capital and the blue side of the city. He made his Lazio debut almost immediately against Genoa in September. He showed glimpses of his unique and wonderful talent as he adjusted to life in Italy, but didn’t score his first goal until November. Luckily, it came in the biggest game of all for Biancocelesti – the Derby della Capitale, the Rome Derby. His celebration was one of relief and joy and a perfect way to land with a bang in the city. His finest moment was a great solo goal against Piacenza, when he controlled the ball instantly about 35 yards from goal, centrally and zigzagged through the Biancorossi defence as they came at him. Each touch was necessary to shield the ball from the oncoming players and within five seconds of his initial contact, it was in the net. ut Gazza was capable of such audacity – both on and off the pitch. He is legendary for some of his comments, funny faces, bodily functions and pranks – including the infamous one where he tricked his bodyguard into thinking he had jumped out of a window where he was staying. But above all, he was a true genius with a ball at his feet and during his career, he showed the magic at one time or another for every club he represented.

Lazio fans still remember him fondly and although they didn’t see the all-round finished article, mainly because of injuries, they look back with joy on his time at the club and think what could have been but for his extended time on the sidelines. Gazza is one England’s best exports and although he didn’t achieve anywhere near what he should have, he will always be remembered for the enchanting feats he performed on a football field. Chris Waddle best summed up Gazza’s inimitable contribution to the game: “The great thing about Gazza is that he didn’t respect who he was playing against. He didn’t even know who he was playing against. When I mentioned (Frank) Rijkaard he thought it was a country.” (Paul Dargan)