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arana peligrosa
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Did you know

Post by arana peligrosa » Fri Jan 20, 2023 3:29 am

This somehow passed under the radar from a personal viewpoint (but) at one time or another years back we came near to bringing Gabriel Batistuta to the club, in fact came close to becoming a Town player. Back in 1994 John Lyall monitored the player while at Fiorentina with a view to bringing him to East Anglia to play in the EPL. A pre-contract agreement was said to be in existence between the Italians and ourselves with a fee of around 3 million which would be enough to acquire the player.

Lyall incidentally was interested at the time in team player Oscar Ruggeri and while that didn't come to pass, the fact remains we brought in Mauricio Taricco at time of interest. (Paz of Uruguay was also brought in which adds credence to any doubt or rumor (and) that the manager was involved in dealings for players from South America)

Batistuta was back in '94 (after a moderately successful World Cup, scoring four) finding life in Italy something dull and viewed a go in the English Premier League. Was yet to become the big star he would be in later years and while many would see the idea of such a player at Portman Road outlandish to say the least, the fact is, that it were, within the realms of possibility. In other words, it's not to say it couldn't have occurred. (Claudio Cannigia featured for Dundee of all things)

Not only that, did some digging and it seems names like Ruud Gullit, Gascoigne and John Barnes were strongly linked to here at one time or another, long before they became the household names they were to become.

The Gullit transfer never got off the ground as then manager Bob Robson had an issue with the Dutchman's attitude - and / or he didn't fit in with Robson's idea of discipline - and Gascoigne was deemed too overweight to be deemed a suitable signing for the club. This story goes back to circa 1983 although not sure Gascoigne was even playing professionally then. Would have started out at Newcastle a year or two later but maybe then manager Bobby Ferguson had been alerted by scouts while seeing the player in a youth team capacity.

Not sure about Barnes, all I know is he was allegedly linked to us years back while when at Watford early in a career.

Real wish the Batistuta transfer had gone through. Wouldn't have saved the team from relegation in 1995, not with that defense, but imagine the possibilities. Could have kept Lyall in a job although maybe not, and a winner at Anfield. Nobody remembers the name Adam Tanner, but suppose Batistuta had scored the only goal that day. It would have been a legacy for the ages.

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marko69
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Re: Did you know

Post by marko69 » Fri Jan 20, 2023 1:46 pm

Size o the lads head? Would’ve been awesome on the end of a decent corner.

hallamblue
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Re: Did you know

Post by hallamblue » Fri Jan 20, 2023 7:22 pm

Gazza trained with Town for a while as a kid. But he was a little porker (short and dumpy) and we didn’t pursue him ….

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marko69
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Re: Did you know

Post by marko69 » Fri Jan 20, 2023 7:41 pm

hallamblue wrote:
Fri Jan 20, 2023 7:22 pm
Gazza trained with Town for a while as a kid. But he was a little porker (short and dumpy) and we didn’t pursue him ….
Really? Didn’t know that either.

Like the Cabbage letting wee fat b*stard John Roberston go…….. goes to the hertz cants …. And scores a ‘burgh derby record of 24 goals. 🤦‍♂️

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arana peligrosa
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Re: Did you know

Post by arana peligrosa » Sat Jan 21, 2023 3:36 am

Wouldn't have fitted in anyhow. By '83 the team was in decline and big names like Mariner and Wark for one were soon to be sold on elsewhere. Gascoigne chubby or otherwise didn't really become recognized until late in his Newcastle career (there was big competition at the time from other names in the club side such as Waddle, Beardsley, even Keegan for a time) so makes you wonder what quite impact he would have had for us while Bob Ferguson was team coach here.

Player over time proved too prone to injury, often bouts of unconventional behavior and self-abuse ruined what should have been a stellar career. Point trying to make is in retrospect it was maybe best we passed up the option to bring him on board. One last thing in that being a lard-as* doesn't prevent a good player. Jan Molby resembled the Hindenburg on legs but proved a very useful player at times and going right back in history, William Foulke (think that's the name) was arguably one of the best goalkeepers of the early 20th century. Took up an entire goal in his defense such were Bill's size.

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marko69
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Re: Did you know

Post by marko69 » Sat Jan 21, 2023 4:25 am

arana peligrosa wrote:
Sat Jan 21, 2023 3:36 am
Wouldn't have fitted in anyhow. By '83 the team was in decline and big names like Mariner and Wark for one were soon to be sold on elsewhere. Gascoigne chubby or otherwise didn't really become recognized until late in his Newcastle career (there was big competition at the time from other names in the club side such as Waddle, Beardsley, even Keegan for a time) so makes you wonder what quite impact he would have had for us while Bob Ferguson was team coach here.

Player over time proved too prone to injury, often bouts of unconventional behavior and self-abuse ruined what should have been a stellar career. Point trying to make is in retrospect it was maybe best we passed up the option to bring him on board. One last thing in that being a lard-as* doesn't prevent a good player. Jan Molby resembled the Hindenburg on legs but proved a very useful player at times and going right back in history, William Foulke (think that's the name) was arguably one of the best goalkeepers of the early 20th century. Took up an entire goal in his defense such were Bill's size.
:lol: :lol: :lol:

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Ricco
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Re: Did you know

Post by Ricco » Sat Jan 21, 2023 1:45 pm

Interesting stuff AP, I had heard it all before, but forgotten details. Every club has a few stories of the ones that got away.

Don't mean to p*ss on your post either, as I do like to ponder these things! But we will probably never know just how close some of these things were to becoming a reality. Batistuta may have had a pre contract with a dozen clubs for all we know. Besides, it may have been more agony had he signed, because we would have still gone down (we wouldn't have beaten United 10-9!!), he wouldn't have shone that year, so we'd have probably lost one the best strikers of all time for pennies, unless that mega loyalty of his kicked in!!

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