Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson regrets not being able to rescue Paul Gascoigne before alcohol-fueled mental health problems took over the former England midfielder’s life.
Gascoigne turned down Manchester for London in 1988, when Tottenham Hotspur signed the 21-year-old player from his boyhood club Newcastle.
“I think that was a bad mistake and Paul admits it to this day because, as a lad, going to London is not easy for a footballer,” Ferguson told Sky Sports in an interview with David Frost.
Ferguson, who has been in charge at Old Trafford since 1986, is a tough disciplinarian who takes a hardline stance on his players’ activities outside the club. The Scot struggled in his early years before stamping out the drinking culture in the squad.
GEORDIES
But he believes United’s strong contingent from Newcastle — “Geordies” — would have been a positive influence on Gascoigne, who was detained on Sunday by police for mental health problems for the second time this year.
“We had Bobby Charlton a Geordie,” Ferguson said. “We had Bryan Robson a Geordie. Steve Bruce a Geordie, we had Gary Pallister from Middlesbrough.”
“We had a structure of players who could have helped him and I think it would have given him some discipline, maybe it would have helped him too,” he said.
Years of Gascoigne’s career were wiped out by injuries and it was further curtailed by off-field demons, including heavy drinking.
The gifted Englishman — nicknamed “Gazza” — dazzled at the 1990 World Cup in the high point of a 57-game international career.
BEST PLAYER
“Paul Gascoigne to me was the best player of his era in English football,” Ferguson said. “He was a breath of fresh air because he played with a smile, and he played with a cunning and an aggression — apart from all the great abilities he had, he loved playing and he loved winning.”
Ferguson first noticed Gascoigne’s talent in March 1987 when his midfield of Bryan Robson, Norman Whiteside and Remi Moses were outclassed in a match at Newcastle.
“Three very competitive footballers, great footballers and he absolutely tore them apart,” Ferguson said.
“After the game I said to the [United] chairman, ‘Don’t leave here ... I’ve gotta get this boy, he’s the best I’ve seen for years and years,’” Ferguson recalled. “And we had the chance to speak to him, he had a chance to speak too to Tottenham.”
Before going on holiday, Ferguson was assured by Gascoigne that Old Trafford would be his next destination, but he lost out to Spurs.
It was a rare defeat in the transfer market for the 66-year-old Ferguson, who said in the interview that he will likely manage the Red Devils for just two more seasons.
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