Paul Gascoigne - Paul Simpson

Paul Gascoigne is arguably the most naturally gifted English midfielder of his generation. Yet as he approaches his mid-30s, he is in danger of becoming a national joke. This biography of a footballing genius seeks to explain this apparent contradiction.;Gascoigne has always been a footballer the media has been quick to criticise and slow to understand. His off-the-pitch activities usually generate more column inches than any flashes of briliance on the pitch. But Gazza is something more than a tabloid buffoon - at his best he is a compelling confirmation of the reason millions of fans still go to football matches every week to the sublime skill, the magical improvisation that makes the heart beat faster.;By talking to the coaches who have tried to guide Gascoigne's talent, and the mentors who have influenced him, the author attempts to redress the balance by focussing on the one reason we still care about Gazza - his football. Daft as a brush, endearing, irritating and inspiring, as a footballer he has defined our nation since 1990. We cried with him in Turin, laughed with him in the Indian summer of Euro 96 and, nervously, calcualted the odds as he joined Everton to mount one last comeback to prove himself, the game and the world that he still has it in him.