Paul Gascoigne

Often described as a footballing "genius", and cited by his former teammate Chris Waddle in 2018 as England's last "real creative midfield player", Paul Gascoigne, usually referred to simply as "Gazza", started his career at Newcastle United, where he played in 92 games and scored 21 goals. He then went to the London club Tottenham Hotspur, where he also played in 92 games and scored nearly as many goals, 19 in total. It was while at Tottenham that he was first called up to the England squad by manager Bobby Robson. He was a key member of England's 1990 FIFA World Cup team that reached the semi-finals, which was the best run of an England team since they won the 1966 World Cup. He became something of a national hero during the tournament due to his sparkling performances, with Bobby Robson later saying that he had been the best young player of the tournament (although FIFA disagreed, awarding that honour to Yugoslavia's Robert Prosinecki). However, Gascoigne was recognized as England'