Flamboyant and stylish winger, who gave Spurs fans a taste of the old days of classic dashing, dribbling wing-play and carved a career outside of the game with his dashing good looks.

David Ginola worked his way up from his local side in Nice to play for Paris St. Germain before he was brought to England by Kevin Keegan, where he became part of the adventurous Newcastle United side that challenged at the top of the table.  When Keegan left the club after failing to deliver, Ginola was surprisingly snapped up by Spurs manager Gerry Francis, who was not renowned for his attacking sides.  The Frenchman was always "the fantasy" in the side and his skills were often not matched by those on the receiving end of his service and there were times when his exasperation showed.

Looking like a million dollars and worth five times that much, Ginola was an enigma. Often frustrating, when he failed to provide a killer pass, he could be sublime in his finishing and crossing.  His dribbling was a delight to watch and if he could have melded that into the team's play, it could have meant very good news all round.  Ginola put in lots of work, despite fears that he was not interested in tacking back, but needed to put aside the Gallic shrugs if something went wrong and get back to close down space.

Ginola's supply line fed fellow ex-Newcastle United star Les Ferdinand and he showed a more pragmatic side to his game in the year when Christian Gross came in and his efforts helped Spurs stay up, while others profited from his chasing back and good service from wide positions.

He scored a whole host of classic goals for Spurs ... the slaloming run against Barnsley at Oakwell; the crashing volley against Leeds United at home in the FA Cup and any number of fine finishes from someone who was not a noted goal-scorer.

A great entertainer, but was accused of not staying on his feet, although for many defenders, it was the only way to stop him, although he enhanced his reputation while playing in England.  He had a mercurial 1998-1999 season, exemplified by his PFA and Football Writers "Player of the Year" awards.  Despite having a quiet game at Wembley, his presence is enough to tie up at least a couple of opponents and make them forget their own game-plan to concentrate on him. 

David was one of the first rumoured departures after George Graham came to Tottenham, but he played and showed a new level of commitment to the team.  Graham tried to channel his talent into producing an end result and he scored and set up goals following that time.  He attracted more than his fair share of attention from the media because of his spectacular "falls", but having signing an extension to his contract, it was hoped he will be the creative heart of Spurs for a number of years to come.

The 1998-99 season was a hard act to live up to and David was a shadow of his 1998-99 self.  He still had the highest number of assists and scored a couple of goals, but his regular substitutions caused uproar amongst the Spurs crowd.  He is the mercurial entertainer, but his effectiveness and sometimes overindulgence lead to him being discarded by the Tottenham management.  

His only medal in England came in the League Cup Final of 1999, when his determined performance, despite being man-marked for the whole game, saw him help ten-man Spurs to a 1-0 victory over Leicester City. 

In 2000, he left under GG's reign to join Aston Villa, before being shipped out to Everton and then Ginola faded out of the football spotlight to adopt a career in acting and film, before moving into wine production in 2008 (when he turned up on BBC 1's "One Show" with some of the Tottenham Hotspur Ladies FC first team as wine tasters).

Ginola had had won a number of honours PSG and his skilful performances won him a place in the French side, but it turned sour for him, when Gerard Houllier was in charge of the national side.  During a 1994 World Cup qualifier against Bulgaria, David came on as a late substitute and tried to hit a cross to Eric Cantona on the far side of the box, when his side were winning and there were just a minute left.  The pass was intercepted and the home side broke away to score and knock France out of the competition and Houllier blamed Ginola "a criminal" for being responsible for the goal that cost the team a place in the finals in the USA.  Despite Ginola's fine form following that match, he was never selected for Les Bleus again.

Moved back to France with his family, but in late 2009 returned to England to live in West London.  David had an interest in a coaching TV channel called "Footschool" and has a vineyard back in France that produces award winning wine.