Paul replies:
I support the teams I played for.
At Tottenham I was flying. At Newcastle I was just upset because to be a great player you have to play with other great players and learn from them. We sold Peter Beardsley and Waddle, who I played with in the England squad, I thought if they are going to sell their best players I’m going to go as well.
Thirty years on it’s still stale, the same situation. They haven’t moved forward, which is a shame. Mike Ashley wants the best for them though and gets flak he doesn’t deserve, bless him.
My time at Tottenham was phenomenal until I got that injury. In some ways I wish I had stayed at Spurs a couple more years. I was flying. I had a year there in 1991 where I could do nothing wrong.
I had the experience of playing and training abroad and in Scotland. Playing for Rangers people thought it was easy, but it’s not. The expectation of being 4-0 at half-time is tough. We could win 6-0 and Walter Smith would be unhappy and make us come in for extra training. I saw different sides of football in England, Italy and Scotland.
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Who is the best British player of all time?
And who is the best foreigner to have played in the Premier league?
Paul replies:
I love Johan Cruyff but the best foreigner to have played here? Thierry Henry had one season and I remember watching him and he was phenomenal. He had power, pace. He knew exactly where the goal was. He could play left wing, right wing, up front. He would run back and make challenges. If you gave him 10 yards he would beat you.
I used to say he catches pigeons on his days off, he was that quick and powerful, and I believe he had a personal trainer on days off and worked on his technique and his balance. For someone to be as good as him and still work day in day out is incredible.
That must have been a lovely pair to play with: Henry and Zidane. He was a very special player, up there with the best.
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Who was the best player you ever played against, and who was the best you ever played with?
Paul replies:
Bryan Robson is phenomenal. I call him dog poo because he was everywhere. What a player. He was box to box, all over the place. When I joined England he said: “Just to let you know Gazza, you’re a great player, but anything in the air I’ll take; I’ll take the stitches for you.” He was a great leader. He broke his leg three times but came back from it. You never had to gee him up.
Some players you needed to gee up, but never Bryan. He was phenomenal. And I’ve played with some great players for England. I’ve played with and against him and I don’t think many players would disagree with me. He’s one of the best players I’ve ever seen.
I played against him, honestly, and I remember him closing down our left-back, making a challenge, and the next second he’s behind me making another challenge. I thought: “How did he get there?” He was fantastic.
He scored the quickest goal at a World Cup. He was hard to play against even though I got man of the match every time! Sorry to mention that Bryan!
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you're the greatest English player of my generation. Who is the best manager you ever played under and how did he motivate you to become the player you were? - we all know that talent can only get you so far
Paul replies:
They helped me by letting me do what I wanted on and off the pitch. I did some daft things off the pitch but it didn’t influence me on it. Terry Venables was an amazing, amazing manager and coach - it was incredible.
Walter Smith was great. I remember being on holiday while I was at Lazio and saying I wanted to play for him and a year later I was.
Sir Bobby I didn’t see as much because he was an international manager. Walter and Archie Knox were great.
I wish I had played under Sir Alex and especially Jose Mourinho. But a manager is only as good as the players he’s got. Terry and Walter Smith knew when to give me a bollocking and when to lay off me.
Sir Alex didn’t talk to me after I didn’t sign for United and I was gutted. I was scared of him anyway. But later on he shook my hand at his testimonial and told me not to worry it. He gave me a watch with his name on it. We were playing and he wanted to take me off with 10 minutes to go but I wouldn’t come off. The fans loved it.
He got his own back at another charity match in Real Madrid when he was managing. He kept telling me to warm up and then he wouldn’t put me on. He finally did for the last 10 minutes and it’s the worst I’ve ever played.
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Paul: Thanks for the memories - particularly the Scotland goal. Do you still think about your near miss in extra time of the semi in 96? Because I know I would!
Cheers fella and I hope you're doing OK.
Paul replies:
It took me a week wondering: “What would have happened there?” If I had kept going I would have knocked it in but I thought the keeper was going to get a touch - just half a fingernail - so I stopped for a fraction of a second. If I had kept going all the way I would have knocked it in, but because of stopping I missed.
It’s not just that but I think about my celebration, as it was a golden goal. I would have run down the tunnel and dived into the big, massive bath at Wembley and come running back out again. I imagine that.
We were so close to getting in the final. We had a great side. It would have been fantastic. We had a great team, a great spirit and a great manager. We would have won the final, definitely. It’s such a shame, it really was.
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Hi Gazza - From your playing experience, which derby was more intense; Rome or the Old Firm?
Paul replies:
Newcastle-Sunderland because they are so close to one another. I didn’t really play in that one - I was a sub and didn’t get on and then Sunderland went down.
Arsenal-Tottenham, which everyone knows is massive, was really my first experience of derbies. We won that one, as everybody knows.
With Roma and Lazio there were 105,000 there. They try to beat each other with flags. If Roma won the league but Lazio beat them twice in the season and finished bottom of the league, it was as if Lazio had won the league. You could see the fear in the players’ eyes. I scored the goal there in the derby and could see wha it meant to the players in their celebrations.
At Rangers-Celtic, the hatred is phenomenal. You go to a place in Celtic where they play snooker they don’t have the blue ball and it’s the same the other way round with the green ball. It’s unbelievable.
In our dressing room you couldn’t wear green and in theirs you couldn’t wear blue. It’s phenomenal; I had never witnessed anything like that. My record stands up there. I played against Celtic 11 times and was unbeaten in 11 and scored four. I remember one fan, a Rangers fan who must have been about 50-odd, said: “You have to be the best all-round players for Rangers and I love you, but I’ve just heard your dad is a Catholic and want him to die. But by the way, any chance of an autograph.” Unbelievable.
I was fortunate because the Roma fans were right on my side too. I would walk around the streets and say: “I’m a Romanista.” They did get their own back once though. I was out and they said to have a beer. I said I was alright but they said: “Why, do you not like us fans?” I said go on then and they spiked my beer. I drank half of it and then said to my mate: “I’ve been done.” I eyes started going funny and I had to pull over when driving home. I never took another drink from a Roma fan, but they really lived for football. Incredible.
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If you could have played alongside any player in the Premier League from today's game who would you choose and why?
Paul replies:
Rooney. It’s not just that he’s a class player, it’s that, if he’s ever having a bad game, he won’t sulk about it, he’ll get busy and put in 110% work rate. He’ll graft for his team.
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Do you think today's footballer lacks personality due to the pressures of what they can or cannot say? Jack Wilshire being a prime example
Paul replies:
I saw what Jack did and thought it was brilliant.
I think what’s happened to me has made players fearful of having a laugh and joke. A lot of players would think about making a joke but then know they might get hammered for it.
The foreigners playing in our country are very professional, although I was too.
Jack Wilshere has done well to win the FA Cup. Is the guy not allowed to celebrate - and obviously he’s had a few drinks? Five days later he’s playing for England they’re raving about him. Players need to get used to it. In this country, when you’re doing really well you should be prepared as they will build you up and knock you down, tell lies about you and sit outside your house.
If I had been him I wouldn’t have apologised. He’ll get so much stick when he plays against Tottenham but what can he do? Go and complain? No. He just has to get on with it. He’s a great talent. I like him as a player.
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During your stint at Lazio, did your Italian teammates fully get your irreverent sense of perhaps British silly humour? The clip of you eating the easter egg springs to mind. If they did not, what was the most awkward moment of you acting out a joke and it being received very badly?
Paul replies:
They had no option. No option. They couldn’t believe what they were seeing, I must admit.
I did one on Di Matteo, who would sometimes get on my nerves. I went back to the villa and there was a little snake. I went back to training in the afternoon and put the snake in his pocket. When we came back in after training I asked him if he had any money. He put his hand in his pocket and nearly shat himself.
But at training I put the effort in as well. Once Dino Zoff said Blatter was coming. He wanted us on time in the Lazio suit. I turned up 30 minutes later in a Santa Claus outfit. I sat next to Blatter and said: “Hello, I’m Santa, ho, ho, ho.” The security wanted to get rid of me and Zoff wasn’t happy and made me train morning and afternoon for a week.
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Paul replies:
Coisty was good. I went and got my teeth done once years ago and they put temporary ones in. I hoped no one would recognise but he spotted it. He said “He could eat an apple through a letterbox!” Unbelievable.
The thing with Coisty is, you’d plan to see him and he wouldn’t turn up. One time I thought I’d give him one more chance. We made an arrangement to meet at 3pm for a pint or whatever and he didn’t turn up. I knew his kids finished school at 4pm. At half past three I went to the pet shop, bought two budgies in a cage, two goldfish and a rabbit. I left these animals outside his front door. The kids came home and they’d say: “Oh mummy, look what we’ve got” and they’d have to keep them. But I’d filled the rabbit’s bottle with Guinness so it was drunk. He rang us up and said: “You horrible such and such.” So he called them Gazza and Jimmy and next time he met me.
I lived near Coisty and knew he left his window open in the kitchen and went in one morning at 1am and made myself a sandwich. He came down running down the stairs with a bat, shouting “Who is it?” He saw it was me and went back upstairs, saying “see you in the morning”. In training the next day he said to me, “What are you like? I could have swung that club at you.” He’s a great guy. I got on with him really well.
It’s a shame what happened to him at Rangers. He did so well there. I wish him well whatever he does. Whenever I see him it’s a great laugh.
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Hi Paul,
I met you once at Canon's Brook golf club, and you were very nice and chatted to me for a few minutes, so thanks for that.
Do you play any other sports, and what are you best at? I heard about you playing marathon tennis matches during Italia 90, is that true?
Paul replies:
I don’t think I know. I’ve played tennis for the county - I’ve eight trophies for tennis and eight for table-tennis and eight for badminton. I’ve even got a trophy for a 10-pin bowling competition.
When the sun comes out again I’ll play some tennis; and some golf. I never really played golf when I was a footballer but I’ve been playing of late. The other week I played unbelievably. I was five over par with two holes to go and I finished nine over, that’s the best I’ve ever played.
I’d do anything with a ball; I have that eye co-ordination. I play the odd game of table-tennis or tennis with the lads. I just love sport, full stop. Anything: dominoes, pool. I love my dominoes. I’m a hustler at pool and my highest break in snooker is 78. I’m good friends with Phil Taylor - the Power.
I just couldn’t sleep the night before the World Cup semi-final in 1990 and heard some noise outside and there were two Americans playing tennis. I asked them to play and they said, “Where’s your partner?” I said that I’d play by myself, against the two of them. I was running around for 45 minutes. It was so funny. I heard a shout: “Gascoigne” and it was Bobby Robson. I just dropped my racquet, ran past him and went back to my room. He shouted: “Do you now know who he is! He’s got the most important game of his life tomorrow!”
I was rooming with Chris Waddle. There was banging on the door. I told him, “If anyone knocks on the door, tell them I’m sleeping as I’m tired.” There was banging on the door and it was Bobby Robson.
“Where’s Gazza?” said Bobby.
“He’s sleeping,’ said Chris.
“He can’t be sleeping. I’ve just seen him playing tennis. I’ll speak to him in the morning.” In the morning he just said to forget about last night. He said to me: “Today you’re playing against Matthäus, the best midfielder in the world.” And I said, “No, he is,” and just walked off.
You didn’t need any sleep for a game like that. I took it as if I was on a boys’ club no matter who I was up against, no matter what nationality they were. Just get me on the pitch. It worked out really well for us.
The tears, that’s just me. Apart from that one time, when I got beat, I never cried. I always cried when I won, because I felt I had achieved something when the pressure was on. Everyone looks for you to fail, at least in the majority of the press. But unfortunately for them, I never failed.
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Gazza, if your health holds up, would TV punditry be something you'd keen on doing more of? Considering how many grey ex footballers we get, you'd definitely add something to any line up.
Paul replies:
I was asked to do it and was offered a lot of money from Sky TV, but have you ever tried putting them dishes up in the winter?
I’ve played with footballers and some of them didn’t like it when they were given stick. I can’t sometimes bring myself to give another player stick, as people forget he’s got family in the crowd and kids back home watching on the TV, thinking “my dad isn’t playing well” and he’s getting hammered by another professional. I don’t have that inside me.
Sometimes I listen to the commentary and think, hold on, they’ve seen a different game to me. But I don’t know if I’d be good at it.
And if a game isn’t good, I’d want to switch off after 15 minutes to watch the Discovery Channel. Sometime I think about it, and I did the World Cup 98 - Links is very good; Shearer is very good and Andy Townsend is very good - but sometimes I think, nah, you have to watch hundreds of games and know all the stats, so don’t worry about it.
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What is your ultimate 5-aside team, including 1 sub? Perhaps two teams, one with players you played alongside and one with those you faced (or similar).
Paul replies:
It’s a toss between Andy Goram and David Seaman, but being English, I’ll go with Seaman. They’re both brilliant goalkeepers but I’ll go with Dave Seaman, who’s class.
Bryan Robson without a doubt.
Myself, obviously. I’ve got to be in there.
Peter Beardsley, Chris Waddle and Alan Shearer. That’s not a bad five-a-side team there. I’ll let David into the Geordie side. It’s an attacking team but if they go 10-nil up we’ll score 11 and need Dave Seaman to do his job. I’ll put Gary Mabbutt in if we need a back four.
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Hi Paul, Jack Charlton was quoted over the weekend as saying that you almost played for Ireland... any truth in this?
Paul replies:
He was pestering us like mad to play for the Republic of Ireland when I was young, but I said I want to play for my country. I was only 19 and he said I’ll play you now, but I told him I didn’t have anyone Irish in my family. He was asking my mum and said: “I will buy you an Irish wolfhound and then you can play for us.” It was really nice of him.
He did amazing at Republic of Ireland, how he turned everything around. They went from a team everyone wanted to play against - as they knew they could score goals against them to a team that was very hard to beat, which we found out at the World Cup. What a character and what a great guy. He helped me in my young career - he did me a favour. I learned a lot from Jack. He’s a great person.
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Paul is in the building and ready to answer your questions. Keep them coming...
Paul replies:
I had a couple of favourites that weren’t on camera.
A lot of people ask and before I can get my words out they say: “It must have been the Arsenal one,” but the one against David Seaman was quite easy – as it was him in goal!
But to score the way I did against Scotland in the European Championships in your own country at Wembley against my mates - and to knock it over Colin Hendry’s head and into the bottom corner - was fantastic. That one stands out. I got loads of stick before the tournament as I was playing up there - which I had to put with for months - so it was a nice feeling when I went back to Rangers. It was all good fun. I saw Colin later in London and I said to him: “Colin, what are you doing here, I thought I left you at Wembley.” He said: “Gazza, don’t mention it.”
What Wayne Rooney said in the film about that goal - that it was the most iconic goal scored for England - was nice. Coming from him - he’s scored some great goals, including his overhead kicks and free-kicks - is really nice. It’s always nice to hear that from a player as great as him. He’s a legend now so for him to spend a bit of time out of his way saying nice things about me about me is nice. But he still owes me £40 - and interest over many years.
When the ball came to me I took a tiny glance and saw Colin was racing towards me. I would have brought the ball down but, when I saw him coming, I knew I had him.
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Paul will be here soon to answer your questions
“Paul Gascoigne is the special one,” says José Mourinho in the first line of Gascoigne, a new documentary about one of England’s most iconic players. After watching this 88-minute feature, you’d be inclined to agree.
“I still think to this day that he is the greatest,” adds Wayne Rooney, who tells the story of how he first met Gascoigne when their careers briefly overlapped at Everton. The club’s youth team were together in their dressing room when Gascoigne put his head around the corner to ask if any of them were going out that night. Most of the players were overcome by shyness and declined to answer, but Rooney says he fronted up and told the resident superstar that he’d be going out. Gascoigne smiled, pulled out his wallet and gave him £40 to spend that evening.
He’s quite the character and he’ll be here from 12.30pm. Enjoy the webchat.
Gascoigne is out on Blu-ray, DVD and digital download from 15 June.
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Hi Paul - What do you think of Tottenham....?