United stand by their troubled legend

Feb 23 2008 by Luke Edwards, The Journal

Paul Gascoigne may have been supremely talented on the football pitch but he has always looked fragile off it. Chief Sports Writer Luke Edwards talked to Kevin Keegan and Roy Keane about his troubles.

IT is a phrase commonly used by addicts who have successfully beaten their drink or drug habits that, sometimes in life, it is necessary to hit rock-bottom before you can start to rise again.

But it is a phrase which will resonate among the friends and family of Paul Gascoigne this weekend as one of English football’s most impressive talents attempts to find his place in the world again.

When Gascoigne was sectioned under the Mental Health Act this week following incidents at two Quayside hotels in the early hours of Wednesday morning, it was the latest regrettable episode in a life which has, to the outside world, been in an almost constant state of turmoil ever since he rose to prominence more than 20 years ago.

The news was a shock to everyone who had followed a career which had seen him become a hometown hero with Newcastle United long before he became a national one with England at the World Cup in Italy in 1990. Yet for those who have come into contact with him over the last 20 years or so, it was not wholly unexpected.

Whether anything could have been done to help “Gazza” with his problems earlier in his life is open to question, although there is no doubt his status as a world-class footballer and international celebrity ensured the many warning signs were largely ignored, while his constant exposure to the media spotlight, inevitably perhaps, has made them worse.

His former idol Kevin Keegan believes it is now vitally important football gives him a purpose in life again, as well as a chance to rebuild his self-esteem. Indeed, while news of Gascoigne’s poor health is hardly a reason to celebrate, Keegan and, more significantly, Gascoigne’s family, believe it is the best thing that could have happened to the 40-year-old who will always seem far younger than that.

“We’ve been in contact with his family and we will do everything we can as a club to help Paul Gascoigne, his dad and his sisters to get through this,” said Keegan, who knew Gascoigne in his time as an apprentice at Newcastle.

“And I mean everything we can, and we’ve already begun that, although what we are doing remains private. He’s someone I know, not greatly but he was my boot boy so we go back a long way. He’s done a lot at this football club and he’s now someone who needs help. His family are the most important thing to him, but after that, in this area, it should be this football club.

“We’re definitely there for him and he knows that. It’s not a case of discussing what role he has to play, I think what has happened to Paul is a very, very positive thing. It seems negative when you say he’s been sectioned and that, but I know his family believe this was the right thing to help Paul who is their main concern. I really believe it is a positive thing and something which needed to be done.

“We’ve told them we can help a lot. It’s sad but maybe what’s happened now will be a turning point for him. Out of something really bad this could be the best thing to happen to Paul.”

Gascoigne’s plight has drawn a sympathetic response from across the world of football, but Sunderland’s manager Roy Keane, who played against Gascoigne on numerous occasions, has been hit harder than most.

Like Gascoigne, Keane attracted plenty of trouble – normally through drink – off the pitch when he was a youngster and it is clear Gascoigne’s demise has made him appreciate how lucky he has been. Indeed, Gascoigne’s problems, according to Keane, are not uncommon as footballers struggle to adapt to the mundane routine of daily life after the glitz and the glamour of a professional football career.

“I was thinking about Paul the other day – I’m always thinking about him and you just hope he finds that bit of happiness that some people don’t seem to find,” said Keane, who might have been a team-mate of Gascoigne if he had decided to sign for Manchester United rather than Tottenham when he left Newcastle in 1988.

“That is a big problem when you stop playing. There’s a massive void in your life and, unless you’ve experienced it yourself, it’s very hard to describe it.

“I know the PFA do brilliant work with courses and help people out with operations, but sometimes it’s not an operation you need, it’s what’s going on in your head.

“I’m sure he will find out who his true friends are now. I hope to God he will be okay.”

Keane added: “Management fills the void a little bit, but nothing will be the same as playing. Nothing whatsoever. It’s not necessarily the physical side, it’s the mental side as well. You have to get your head around it.

“It’s a great life to have, but you have to have a good life outside of football as well. You need a good family and find stuff to do away from football.”

I’m always thinking about Paul. You just hope he finds that bit of happiness some people don’t seem to find