How good was Paul Gascoigne

Jim Beam

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Pretty feckin good.



And do you think that Fergie could have changed him? To be more professional which was always a theme surrounding his career?
 
Jim Beam said:
Pretty feckin good.



And do you think that Fergie could have changed him? To be more professional which was always a theme surrounding his career?
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He was amazing up until the injury - afterwards he still did it in spurts (not spurs) but was never the same.

But no I don't think even Fergie could have changed him.
 
most talented English player ever, for me

was incredibly good in Italia 90

I don't know if Fergie could've changed him, but probably not..
 
I’d say he is more talented than Rooney, or probably any other English players I’ve seen. But his lack of professionalism has ruined his career.
 
Nowhere near Rooney's level. He was totally overrated you only have to look at the teams he played for and what he achieved to see that.

A decent player that the press latched onto and made a lot more off than he deserved
 
lsd said:
Nowhere near Rooney's level. He was totally overrated you only have to look at the teams he played for and what he achieved to see that.

A decent player that the press latched onto and made a lot more off than he deserved
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"He was a marvellous player. I loved his strength. We played Newcastle up there and he had just come back from injury
"As soon as he came back, they started winning games. I played three in the middle of the pitch -- Whiteside, Robson and Remi Moses and he destroyed them.
"He nutmegged Moses right in front of the dugout and patted him on the head.
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I think he was absolutely brilliant at young age.
 
lsd said:
Nowhere near Rooney's level. He was totally overrated you only have to look at the teams he played for and what he achieved to see that.

A decent player that the press latched onto and made a lot more off than he deserved
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This. I wouldn’t say he was ‘nowhere near’ Rooney’s level but he was and is horribly overrated. Also people are too easily trotting out superlatives like ‘most talented English player ever.’ England have had some other talented players you know. Glenn Hoddle and John Barnes spring to mind in particular. The difference is that Gascoigne was trusted more by England managers than those two, for some reason. Probably because he used to put it about a bit as well as trying to create.
 
NasirTimothy said:
This. I wouldn’t say he was ‘nowhere near’ Rooney’s level but he was and is horribly overrated. Also people are too easily trotting out superlatives like ‘most talented English player ever.’ England have had some other talented players you know. Glenn Hoddle and John Barnes spring to mind in particular. The difference is that Gascoigne was trusted more by England managers than those two, for some reason. Probably because he used to put it about a bit as well as trying to create.
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The only reason he is rated so highly by people is he comes with his own "if only " card.

If only he didn't drink if only he chose United over Spurs, if only he wasn't a headcase etc.

His supporters use these things to overrate him and compare him to the best players in the world.

They can't do that with the likes of Scholes,Gerrard,Lampard even Beckham etc as you can lift their records out and rate them to the Xavis,Ineistas,Ballacks even Messi and compare them.

I would rate all those players above Gascoigne. He is as overrated as Italia 90 is overrated.

The same people who will claim Gazza as the greatest of his generation will tell you England should have won that year.

They will ignore how steeped in luck they all were against Belgium and Cameroon who they never should have gotten past.

Even Ireland outplayed England in the group stages and they were fortunate to get through to the knock out stage.

Still Gazza cried because he was going to be suspended for the final and it's all romantized just like his career
 
Very talented footballer. But very flawed person so didn't achieve as much as he could / should have. As well as the injury issue of course.

I wouldn't put a label on him, or any other player, as 'the best...' But he was up there for consideration talent / potential wise. However he was weak when it came to the mental / professional side of the game and that's also a key part to consider in terms of the all round ability of a player.

As regards could Fergie have got him to fully settle down and focus on his game? No, I really don't think so. Not permanently. No one has - not himself, friends, family, managers, teammates, medical professionals, etc. He seems to be too troubled for anyone to get him straightened out permanently.

Fergie was very good at it, but he wasn't a miracle worker. He may have managed it for longer than most, and we'd have benefitted from his quality performances for a time. But I fully expect it would have ended at some point with Fergie deciding Gazza had become more trouble than he was worth in terms of regular off the pitch issues / poor influence on youngsters, etc.
 
What does Gazza mean? I’m Mexican and have been googling it for a long time but I have never known it’s meaning.
 
He was brilliant. Fergie would've changed nothing unless he knew doctors who could rebuild legs. Gazza's biggest issues were always his injuries, he had some really bad ones. Did well to have the career he had. Amazing player, no English player in the past 40 years can touch him.
 
NasirTimothy said:
This. I wouldn’t say he was ‘nowhere near’ Rooney’s level but he was and is horribly overrated. Also people are too easily trotting out superlatives like ‘most talented English player ever.’ England have had some other talented players you know. Glenn Hoddle and John Barnes spring to mind in particular. The difference is that Gascoigne was trusted more by England managers than those two, for some reason. Probably because he used to put it about a bit as well as trying to create.
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He was trusted more because he performed, the others you mentioned didn't. It's that simple.
 
Charrockero said:
What does Gazza mean? I’m Mexican and have been googling it for a long time but I have never known it’s meaning.
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It doesn't mean anything, it is a nickname based on his surname. Hope that makes sense.

English people do this a lot - some people called Darren are informally called 'Dazza' - and some people called Barry get called 'Bazza'

So Gascoigne = Gazza.

A bit like how in Spanish, Berni = Bernardo, Chebo = Eusebio.
 
lsd said:
The only reason he is rated so highly by people is he comes with his own "if only " card.

If only he didn't drink if only he chose United over Spurs, if only he wasn't a headcase etc.

His supporters use these things to overrate him and compare him to the best players in the world.

They can't do that with the likes of Scholes,Gerrard,Lampard even Beckham etc as you can lift their records out and rate them to the Xavis,Ineistas,Ballacks even Messi and compare them.

I would rate all those players above Gascoigne. He is as overrated as Italia 90 is overrated.

The same people who will claim Gazza as the greatest of his generation will tell you England should have won that year.

They will ignore how steeped in luck they all were against Belgium and Cameroon who they never should have gotten past.

Even Ireland outplayed England in the group stages and they were fortunate to get through to the knock out stage.

Still Gazza cried because he was going to be suspended for the final and it's all romantized just like his career
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he's rated for the player he was

he was incredible at the world cup

probably the best performance of an English player at a major tournament I've seen (I didn't see anything pre-90 though)
 
NasirTimothy said:
This. I wouldn’t say he was ‘nowhere near’ Rooney’s level but he was and is horribly overrated. Also people are too easily trotting out superlatives like ‘most talented English player ever.’ England have had some other talented players you know. Glenn Hoddle and John Barnes spring to mind in particular. The difference is that Gascoigne was trusted more by England managers than those two, for some reason. Probably because he used to put it about a bit as well as trying to create.
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I'd say Hoddle was close but not Barnes. But Gazza would be my number 1 (for talent alone, not overall career)
 
lsd said:
The only reason he is rated so highly by people is he comes with his own "if only " card.

If only he didn't drink if only he chose United over Spurs, if only he wasn't a headcase etc.

His supporters use these things to overrate him and compare him to the best players in the world.

They can't do that with the likes of Scholes,Gerrard,Lampard even Beckham etc as you can lift their records out and rate them to the Xavis,Ineistas,Ballacks even Messi and compare them.

I would rate all those players above Gascoigne. He is as overrated as Italia 90 is overrated.

The same people who will claim Gazza as the greatest of his generation will tell you England should have won that year.

They will ignore how steeped in luck they all were against Belgium and Cameroon who they never should have gotten past.

Even Ireland outplayed England in the group stages and they were fortunate to get through to the knock out stage.

Still Gazza cried because he was going to be suspended for the final and it's all romantized just like his career
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Everyone could have won it in Italia 90'. Even Diego who was deep in his problems and I would say that Gazza just started with his or was already in the phase that was worrying.

Every game was on the edge, not just England’s one and in the end Germany deservedly won it, but if you compare their game with England and final against Argentina you will see how much England was close compared to Argentina to win the game. They went stronger as the tournament progressed and gave their best performance in the semifinal. And Gazza was really a standout in terms of individual performance in what was mostly a defensive WC (the game against Holland where he absolutely dominated their midfield was probably his best)

But, as for Gazza, he did get legendary status in Italia, only his talent was at his absolute best at Newcastle and then Spurs. A unique talent in terms of running a midfield on his own.
 
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David Platt was better.

He scored 151 club goals and 27 national goals.
 
Gazza tore it up in one or two games at Italia 90, the worst tournament in living memory, in Scotland and against Scotland, that was about it.

Massively overrated for some reason.

Checks Gazza's nationality, mystery about why he was so massively overrated solved.

The truth is we'll never know how good he really was because of the injury he sustained in 91, which in a cruel twist of fate was self-inflicted.

Certainly didn't come close to living up to the hype though.
 
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lsd said:
Nowhere near Rooney's level. He was totally overrated you only have to look at the teams he played for and what he achieved to see that.

A decent player that the press latched onto and made a lot more off than he deserved
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more so post Lazio days.

The hype before then was warranted. Genius fooballer.
 
Tarrou said:
I'd say Hoddle was close but not Barnes. But Gazza would be my number 1 (for talent alone, not overall career)
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I was the biggest fan of John Barnes. I think he had everything. Speed, skill, great dribbler, strength, good with both feet, passing, goals, could head the ball and for a few seasons at the end of the 80's he was in my opinion the best player in England.
 
JimHopper said:
I was the biggest fan of John Barnes. I think he had everything. Speed, skill, great dribbler, strength, good with both feet, passing, goals, could head the ball and for a few seasons at the end of the 80's he was in my opinion the best player in England.
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yeah he was absolute class in his pomp, unplayable at times

but then so was Gazza of course
 
Tarrou said:
yeah he was absolute class in his pomp, unplayable at times

but then so was Gazza of course
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Barnes was an incredible player - he really was something special, arguably the best player in the league in the late 80s.
 
The second most talented English midfielder after Charlton. The “what if” question would always remain with him and it would’ve been such a feat to see him playing for Fergie but somehow I have a feeling that his chaotic energy would’ve been too much too handle even for Sir Alex.

It may sound like a weird comparison but at his best game he had almost looked like a midfield (and, somehow, distinctly English) equivalent of Ronaldinho in the way that he had combined his seemingly infinite arsenal of tricks with sturdy physique and never-ending jokes.

 
lsd said:
The only reason he is rated so highly by people is he comes with his own "if only " card.

If only he didn't drink if only he chose United over Spurs, if only he wasn't a headcase etc.

His supporters use these things to overrate him and compare him to the best players in the world.

They can't do that with the likes of Scholes,Gerrard,Lampard even Beckham etc as you can lift their records out and rate them to the Xavis,Ineistas,Ballacks even Messi and compare them.

I would rate all those players above Gascoigne. He is as overrated as Italia 90 is overrated.

The same people who will claim Gazza as the greatest of his generation will tell you England should have won that year.

They will ignore how steeped in luck they all were against Belgium and Cameroon who they never should have gotten past.

Even Ireland outplayed England in the group stages and they were fortunate to get through to the knock out stage.

Still Gazza cried because he was going to be suspended for the final and it's all romantized just like his career
Click to expand...
I’m with you 100% on the overrating of England at Italia ‘90 and the nauseating romanticism that immediately built up around it. The England setup is still burdened with its legacy.

Gazza was brilliant for Newcastle though, and for Spurs, even after the injury. Given the amount of “personal problems” he suffered from, it’s remarkable that he had a career that lasted as long as it did; regardless of the clubs he played for.

All of that was in the future at the time United were looking at signing him though. I very much doubt that things would have turned out any different in the long run had he come here rather than Spurs, but there’s little doubt that United would have been better off with him for a few seasons.
 
Not a patch on Ravel Morrison.

Redcafe meme, don’t kill me
 
Insanely good footballer. When I hear people talk about Rooney, and when we first signed Rooney as a teen, Gazza is what I was expecting. Of course by joining us, and Gazza opting not to join us, Rooney achieved more. But Gazza was a very special player. He’d just pick the ball up and go past players for fun, could see and pick a pass and control a game from midfield. Once he got running there was only really one way to stop him, foul him. He played at a time when not every game was live on TV and CL wasn’t formed so this is why posters on here are criminally underrating him.

By a distance the most talented English player of the past 40-50 years.
 
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