10 Things Paul Gascoigne Wants You To Forget

1­. Alcoholism

If there was one thing which Gazza could remove from his career it would be alcohol. It is an obvious statement, but the truth. His magical moments in football have been overshadowed by his continuing alcohol problems. The first real sign that he may have had a problem was after an England match against San Marino in 1993. The then England manager, Graham Taylor said that he may be €˜refuelling problem€™. The signs were there also when he joined Lazio and came back for pre-season a stone and a half overweight. He was then involved in numerous stories on nights out where police were called. Back in England in 1996, he reportedly went drinking in London at same time as his wife was going into labour and she was hundreds of miles away in the North-East at the time of the birth. But, the problem seemed to come to light further in 1998 when he wasn€™t included in the England squad. From there, it never really seemed like Gazza recovered from. His manager at Middlesbrough at the time, Bryan Robson, gave him an ultimatum over his drinking, but the club later confirmed Gazza had been checked into the Marchwood Priory Hospital to receive treatment for stress, depression and a drink problem. He then pledged to stop drinking. He joined Everton in 2001, but then missed a pre-season friendly, prompting speculation about his future. Later it was revealed he was attending a rehabilitation clinic in Arizona. His career was then coming to an end. He left Everton in 2002 to join Burnley, Chinese side Gansu Tianma and finally Boston United. He retired in 2004 but was then hospitalised with pneumonia, sparking fears over his long-term health, but Gazza bounced back and became manager of Kettering in October 2005. However,Gascoigne left Kettering after just 39 days in the job as the chairman Imraan Ladak claimed the former England midfielder was "under the influence of alcohol before, during and after several first-team games and training sessions". Two years later he was arrested for an assault on photographers in Liverpool and then in 2007 he underwent emergency surgery for a perforated stomach ulcer as his 40th birthday celebrations took a turn for the worse and his health - "both physical and mental" - spiraled downwards. He was arrested in Newcastle and sectioned under the Mental Health Act in 2008 and since then has tried to stay away from alcohol but has had some relapses including the Raual Moat instant of 2010. Now, though it looks like all this could be behind him. Gascoigne is one of the finest players of his generation, but his handful of honours and 57 England caps seem to have been overshadowed by his off the field problems.