Born on 27th May 1967 in Gateshead, England.

Started off at Dunston's Boys Club (where Alan Shearer and Michael Carrick also played), then the Redheugh Boy's Club.

Spotted by scouts and had trials with Ipswich Town, Middlesbrough and Southampton, but eventually got picked up by local side Newcastle United, signing in 1983.

Debut in 1985 against

Played 107 games and scored 25 goals for the Magpies before he was signed by Spurs for a record £2 million fee in 1988.

England debut as a substitute against Demark in 1988.

Received a second booking in the World Cup semi-final of 1990 against Germany, which potentially ruled him out of the final.  He shed tears on the pitch, but did his best to win the game for England (which they lost on penalties).

His emotional side won him many admirers and Gazzamania swept the country on his return, when he appeared with a fake pair of breasts and large stomach on top of an open-top bus through Luton after the team touched down.

After the World Cup 1990, when England got to the semi-finals, Gazza was voted Sports Personality of the Year in the BBC poll.

Reached number 2 in the charts with a cover of "Fog On The Tyne" and featured original artists Lindisfarne on the record.

Had been negotiated for him to join Lazio of Serie A for £5.5 million after the FA Cup Final of 1991, but a hyped up performance saw him lucky to escape being sent off, although he picked up a cruciate knee injury in fouling Gary Charles.  Carried off, he had to watch the rest of the game from a West End hospital.  After the game, the team visited him in hospital with the FA Cup and with his medal..

He had a torrid time in Italy, injuring his knee in a night club in the UK before starting his career in Serie A, then being beset by the media, he had a couple of incidents which made it difficult for his new club.

Returned to the Uk with a move to Glasgow Rangers in June 1995.

Scored a hat-trick in the final game of the season against Aberdeen to wrap up the SPL title for Rangers and was voted Scottish Player of the Year.

Recalled by England for Euro 1996 in their home country, he played a major part in the team reaching another semi-final, only to go out to Germany on penalties once more.  On the way, he scored a sublime goal against Scotland, as he lobbed the ball over Colin Hendry's head and smacked a volley past his Scottish team mate, goalkeeper Andy Goram.

Gascoigne was controversially left out of the England squad for France 1998 by manager Glenn Hoddle and the player did not take it well.  He had previous hit the headlines in the newspapers prior to the pre-tournament training camp for his alcoholism and family problems.

Joined Middlesbrough in 1998.

Signed for Everton in , playing only 38 times and scoring once.

Moved onto Burnley, but further problems prevented him making no more than six appearances.

In an attempt to resurrect his career, he signed for Chinese Second Division side Gansu Nongken Tianma in February 2003and left claiming he had not been paid for three months after playing only four matches.  This time did include six weeks in a Arizona rehab centre where Gascoigne was being treated for alcohol addiction.

On his return to England, he signed up to play and coach Boston United on 30th July 2004, but 11 games later he was on the move again, on 5th October having played four matches, this time to take a coaching course.

In October of that year, Gascoigne announced that he wanted to be known as "G8" (Great) to break away from the Gazza persona.

In 2005 Paul had a two month spell as coach with newly formed side Algarve United, but no formal arrangement to stay there was made.

With new owners of non-League Kettering Town, Paul Gascoigne was handed the opportunity to get into football management.  It was October 2005 when he took over at the Conference North side, but he lasted little longer than some of his later spells of employment, as he was sacked for drinking and getting involved in a scuffle outside a night club, as owner Imraan Ladak told the media that "following discussions it has been decided that Paul is unable to carry out his duties as manager."  

Throughout his life, Gascoigne has suffered with Obsessive Compulsive disorder, a syndrome in which he is required to repetitively carry out an action (folding towels, switching light on or off, etc) before feeling safe enough to move on.

His troubled life continued into 2008, when he was taken into care under the Mental Health Act because of his bizarre behaviour in a North-East hotel.

NICKNAME :   Gazza

MIDDLE NAME :   John

Career Record
 

Club	Signed	Fee	Debut	Apps	Goals
Newcastle United	1983	??	??	107	25
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR	??	??	??	??	??
Lazio (Italy)	??	??	??	47	6
Glasgow Rangers	??	??	??	102	39
Middlesbrough	??	??	??	48	4
Everton	??	??	??	38	1
Burnley	??	??	??	6	0
Gansu Tianma (China)	??	??	??	4	2
Boston United	??	??	??	4	0

Career Record
Newcastle United
- League appearances; goals
- FA Cup appearances; goals
- League Cup appearances; goals
Tottenham Hotspur
- League appearance; goals
- FA Cup appearances; goals
- League Cup appearances; goals
Lazio (Italy)
- League appearance; goals
- appearance
Glasgow Rangers
- League appearances; goals
- Scottish FA Cup appearances; goals
- Scottish League Cup appearances; goals
Middlesbrough
- League appearances; goals
- FA Cup appearances; goals
- League Cup appearances; goals
Everton
- League appearances; goals
- FA Cup appearances; goals
- League Cup appearances; goals
Burnley
- League appearances; goals
- FA Cup appearances; goals
- League Cup appearances; goals
Gansu Tianma (China)
- League appearances; goals
Boston United
- League appearances; goals
- FA Cup appearances; goals
- League Cup appearances; goals
 

Honours
England international
57 full caps;  10 goals
Under-21 caps; goals
FA Cup winners medal 1990-91 (THFC)
Scottish Premier League Championship winners medal  (Glasgow Rangers)

Milestones
- appearance