Gazza charged with sex assault

[number 9]

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-46261574

What a shame to have witnessed the downfall of one of England's greats. His struggle with alcoholism has ruined his life...and now there's this.

[Tangfastic]

The guy has serious problems and it could well be true.

On the other hand, wouldn’t it be right to let the court deal with it and hopefully there will be a fair outcome.

Get the feeling these days that people are tried and condemned by the ( social) media before they have a chance to have a fair trial in court.

[Bluemike]

This guy has been helped time and time and time again to conquer his demons, ex colleagues paying for rehab and god knows what, all he did was abuse himself further, I have no sympathy for the pr*ck.

[AylesburyBlue]

Lock him up. Best thing for him.

[arana peligrosa]

Considerably ambiguous when it (solely) mentions touching. We don't know the extent of what occurred or the true detail of what Mr Gascoigne is perceived to have done.

If indeed this incident is accurate. Prepared to reserve judgment until any (or a) conviction comes to pass. Things get twisted out of all proportion in the media and misconceptions will be rife. Of course Gascoigne's prior behavior has often been taken into question but as before will await the true nature of this issue before true condemnation can arise.

Recall the Raoul Moat stand-off some years back. Gascoigne offered himself as a negotiator if correct at some point of the incident - which was ill-advised, but taking into consideration the idiosyncrancies of the individual it's easy to see his ideally placed best intentions.

[derick_ipsw]

Considerably ambiguous when it (solely) mentions touching. We don't know the extent of what occurred or the true detail of what Mr Gascoigne is perceived to have done.

If indeed this incident is accurate. Prepared to reserve judgment until any (or a) conviction comes to pass. Things get twisted out of all proportion in the media and misconceptions will be rife. Of course Gascoigne's prior behavior has often been taken into question but as before will await the true nature of this issue before true condemnation can arise.

Recall the Raoul Moat stand-off some years back. Gascoigne offered himself as a negotiator if correct at some point of the incident - which was ill-advised, but taking into consideration the idiosyncrancies of the individual it's easy to see his ideally placed best intentions.

If Paul Gascoigne offered me advice..............I would shoot myself as well

[marko69]

Speaking purely from a football aspect and nothing else at all...... it’s a great shame to see him completely waste his life. When at the now defunct Rangers Football Club, it was great to see him come to Easter Road. Certainly one of the best players I’ve ever witnessed attending live football. Gifted player.

[Charnwood]

I will be very surprised if he gets found guilty of any crime, sadly the guy is his own worst enemy and an easy target for anyone wanting to exploit his many weaknesses.

Unfortunately he is a fallen idol who our own Sir Bobby was so kind to and tried to protect. Had he still been alive he would still be looking out for him today and for this reason alone I wish him no harm.

Like Marko I think it’s such a shame to see one of our greatest ever players fall by the wayside, a broken man.

[number 9]

Arguably, Georgie Best also ended up wasting his life due to alcoholism. In my opinion, Best is the best player the UK ever produced. I'll always respect Best's and Gascoigne's football prowess...and I certainly have sympathy for both of them. Life can be a bitch!

RIP George Best

[Bluemike]

I would say Best and Messi are the Two greatest players of all time.

[arana peligrosa]

if you've ever read Alex Ferguson's autobiography you'll know Gascoigne was on the verge of signing up with Manchester United in the summer of 1988. Deal was all ready to go through, at the last moment he decides to transfer to Tottenham, all this after giving the aforementioned Ferguson his guarantee that he would join them that close season.

Point being, that was a critical time for the player. Possibly the biggest decision the player made in his professional career. Would have been mentored correctly by a manager that didn't suffer fools or take sh*t from nobody. Would have provided guidance and protection from off-field misadventure.

It's arguable joining up with another club set-up that were far more lenient and didn't possess the same level of discipline worked against the player particularly when he was just coming on to the verge of greatness. Albeit it were short lived. In retrospect the Lazio move was unnecessary. Gascoigne was never going to be a hit in Italy and done for a circus of media attention.

Being omitted from France 98 on the eve of the tournament would have set the player back also, but by then he was without question a poor imitation of the player that once provided much hope and enthusiasm. You got to be of a certain age to really appreciate the nature of Gascoigne's hits and misses, all told decisions were made that proved detrimental in the players eventual accomplishments (or lack of) and status.

[number 9]

He would have been brilliant for ManU, especially with Sir Alex at the helm!