"Jossys Giants" visit Bobby Charlton and Willie McFaul at St James' Park 1985. Aye Bobby Charlton, not Jackie Charlton who had left the club as manager in the huff over player sales and such before McFaul stepped in and faced the same old problem. After introducing the Jossy's lads to McFaul the ex Northern [.

Birth certificates don't serve much of a purpose these days. Everybody has one and after they're put away in the bedroom drawer they're not really needed until you start dealing with government bureaucrats years later. But when Thierry Henry's the subject of conversation everybody's suddenly interested in his birth date, which was Aug.

Who would Steven Gerrard invite to his ideal dinner party, and what food would be served? Liverpool FC's captain recently revealed all...
Dinner guests?
"I think Michael Jackson would be one; I'd ask him what was going on his life"
Perhaps someone should let Gerrard know that Jackson is no longer of this earth.

Capello taking a Ledley risk by playing Jones in midfield

There always seems to be a late starter before every major tournament. Theo Walcott, Paul Gascoigne, David Platt, Aaron Lennon, Owen Hargreaves and even Gary Lineker staked their claims late on before previous tournaments.

Last summer I heard rumours that Paul Gascoigne was dead. Unlike the rest of the rubbish that circulates the ether, sadly this had the ring of truth. He had been looking more pale and drawn than ever and the stories more bizarre, if that were possible.

Gazza stopped being daft as a brush years ago but the nation kept on laughing.

Last summer I heard rumours that Paul Gascoigne was dead. Unlike the rest of the rubbish that circulates the ether, sadly this had the ring of truth. He had been looking more pale and drawn than ever and the stories more bizarre, if that were possible.

Gazza stopped being daft as a brush years ago but the nation kept on laughing.

Charlie Adam and Danny Wilson were never going to match Paul Gascoigne's...

England legend Paul Gascoigne has revealed that Kenny Dalglish tried to sign him for Liverpool during the 1988 season.
Gascoigne, who went on to sign for Spurs instead, remembered:
"Kenny was the first one to come in for me. He said ‘I want to sign you'...Ian Rush was playing at Juventus at the time.

Wayne Rooney ist ein Trottel. Wieso? Weil er wegen seiner Tätlichkeit im letzten Gruppenspiel der EM-Qualifikation jetzt für drei offizelle Spiele gesperrt wurde, was nichts anderes bedeutet, dass er die komplette Vorrunde bei der EM 2012 in Polen und der Ukraine nicht mitspielen darf. In England ist daraufhin die große Diskussion ausgebrochen, ob man nicht [.

Reaction is still pouring in after UEFA disciplinary committee announced that England forward Wayne Rooney has been banned for all of England's Group stages in the Euro 2012 tournament.

No one expected such a hash judgement and you can be sure that the ruling is the beginning of a debate that will not end any time soon.

By Chris Wright

"Another wee dram Colonel?"

You'll be glad to know that Paul Gascoigne is not dead...yet, and that he's also been reminiscing with Piers Morgan (for the ruddy-faced bounder's tear-milking Life Stories television show) about the time he visited Libya, snooted enough fluff to down a Stegosaurus and then took the fruits of Colonel Gaddafi's loins out on the lash around gay Tripoli:

"I went to Libya when I played for Middlesbrough and took Gaddafi's two sons out and got them absolutely lamped.

By Chris Wright

Part-inspired by Sandro's blue Roadkill Mullet-Hawk, welcome one-and-all to the Pies 'Horror Hair Hall Of Fame'. Let's dive straight in shall we?

(Warning: Those with a low resistance to wanton follicle abuse should probably turn around and leave right about.

By Alan Duffy

We have been blessed with a multitude of truly hideous, often quirky and occasionally mediocre music videos made by those usually more comfortable with a ball at their feet than a microphone in their hand.

So here, in order of chart performance, is a hand-picked, sun-ripened assortment of five of the best/worst of the footballer/pop genre.

Fabio Capello looking for the Philosopher's stone to transform England?

There is no one in this England team save Wayne Rooney who'll make a World XI. And he relies on service. The best European teams have a midfield that have all five bars of connectivity when on the pitch while England stumble around looking for a signal.

By Sam Blakeley, writing from London

To the uninitiated, the ‘number 10' in football is that archetypal player who links midfield with attack, floating between the two and becoming the playmaker of the side. He must be blessed with vision, composure, awareness, and an incredible range of passing, culminating in an almost extra-sensory ability to control the game and be within and without everything that happens going forward for the team.

THFC1882 is pleased to present another guest writer. This look at Ledley King is from Gareth Johnson.

Gareth Johnson is a rare breed ... a born and bred Geordie .. and a Spurs supporter! "It has to be a genetic disorder" says Gareth, who has supported the club for 24 years.

Victor Decolongon/Getty Images(Bleacher Report) England is the birthplace of the world's greatest game. Not only does it have the title of home of the beautiful game, but it is also home to many legendary players in the sport.
Men like Peter Shilton, who holds the record for the most caps in the English National Team at 125, and Manchester United immortal, Sir Bobby Charlton.

Episode II left off at Wembley and now Episode III is all about the right to go back to Wembley. From Paul Gascoigne's heroics in 1991, fast forward to January 2008 and the fight between good and evil is being waged on home turf.

Wednesday January 23rd 2008 to be precise and the 2nd leg of the Carling Cup semi final at White Hart Lane.

Have fun with this interactive graph from the Wall Street Journal that allows you to click and drag the victims of the NOTW phone hacking in line with the chain of villains who actually carried out these black ops. All unintentional of course but worthy of a snicker or two.

You can do this with Ryan Giggs, Paul Gascoigne, Jude Law, and liberal firebrand George Galloway, all of them hacking victims amongst many.

Let me take you back to 14th April 1991 and the first ever FA Cup semi-final played at the old Wembley Stadium. I had just turned 14 and was very nervous sitting in the crowd of 77,893 waiting, in my shirt, scarf and hat, for my beloved team to take the field against an Arsenal team that were on course to win the league (which they indeed did) and it was up to us to try and stop them winning the possible double.

Let me take you back to 14th April 1991 and the first ever FA Cup semi-final played at the old Wembley Stadium. I had just turned 14 and was very nervous sitting in the crowd of 77,893 waiting, in my shirt, scarf and hat, for my beloved team to take the field against an Arsenal team that were on course to win the league (which they indeed did) and it was up to us to try and stop them winning the possible double.

Let me take you back to 14th April 1991 and the first ever FA Cup semi-final played at the old Wembley Stadium. I had just turned 14 and was very nervous sitting in the crowd of 77,893 waiting, in my shirt, scarf and hat, for my beloved team to take the field against an Arsenal team that were on course to win the league (which they indeed did) and it was up to us to try and stop them winning the possible double.

Let me take you back to 14th April 1991 and the first ever FA Cup semi-final played at the old Wembley Stadium. I had just turned 14 and was very nervous sitting in the crowd of 77,893 waiting, in my shirt, scarf and hat, for my beloved team to take the field against an Arsenal team that were on course to win the league (which they indeed did) and it was up to us to try and stop them winning the possible double.

Poor, to be Franck He should have known better. He had his warning. Chris Waddle. Glenn Hoddle. Andy Cole (that one was ear-rapingly bad). Ian Wright. Paul Gascoigne. Everyone knows that footballers, as good as they are with their legs and feet, have a tendency to be dreadful at making music. It's something to do [.

Antes de la premier league y sus dueños norteamericanos, antes de los contratos multimillonarios de jugadores extranjeros,antes de David Beckham y demás metrosexuales existió el mitico y polemico Paul Gascoigne, antes de la película de Goal, antes de todo eso vale recordar una noche en Turin.

Below is an article by Mark Segal concerning Joe Cole's frustrating descent to bit-part player...

"When you're older, you'll be able to tell your grandchildren you were at Upton
Park the day Joe Cole signed his first professional contract.

The 1990 World Cup will forever be remembered for Paul Gascoigne aka Gazza breaking down in tears following his second yellow card of the tournament in the Semi-Finals against West Germany which would have ruled him out of the World Cup Final had England not succumbed to a penalty shoot-out defeat to the Germans.

There are high-hopes for England's current under 21 squad as they head to the European Championship. But what have they got to live up to? 1. 1982 Star man: Justin Fashanu Notables: Mike Duxbury, Sammy Lee, Paul Goddard The England Under 21 side picked up its first major success after its formation in 1976 by [.

Over the long weekend I was luckily enough to see an advanced copy of the new movie 'One Night In Turin" which chronicles England's 1990 World Cup run where they lost to West Germany on penalties in the semi-finals.

Watching the movie I was struck by the similarities between England's 1990 World Cup run and the 2010 effort.

Football and music often goes hand in hand. Unfortunately for modern spectators, this relationship is less obvious nowadays as footballers choose to channel their musicality more passively. The closest Premier League stars have come to Top of the Pops in ... Continue reading →

If anything is to be garnered from last night's exit from the Champions League it should be a feeling of pride. Every single spurs fan should be walking around today strutting, chest firmly puffed out like the cockerel that adorns the west stand at White Hart Lane, for nothing that's happened during our first season in Europe's elite competition should make us believe we don't belong there.

Leon Osman has never made an international appearance despite seven solid seasons with Everton. Is he England's ‘forgotten man'?
On Saturday, a late Leighton Baines penalty cancelled out two Darren Bent strikes as Everton shared the points with Aston Villa in a dramatic draw at Goodison Park.

The FA's new head of elite development intends to change how young talent is nurtured and to improve relationships between clubs and England. Apart from a few "geniuses" who came through despite the weaknesses of the English grass-roots and coaching structures – he cites Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney and Paul Gascoigne – Southgate says: "We definitely realised we were inferior.

Paul Gascoigne was set to join Manchester United when he was just 21-years-old from his boyhood club, Newcastle after winning the Young Player of the Year award.

Sir Alex Ferguson went on holiday after reaching an agreement with the player, only to return and find out that he had signed for Spurs for £2m instead.

Here we go again.
With the class of 2010 ruthlessly chewed up and spat out by the media; labelled spoilt over-paid, over-rated wasters, the press hordes have moved onto their next target.
That person is Jack Wilshire, a young player of extreme talent yes, but one who is already been placed on a pedestal he is not yet qualified to fill.

Photo by gadgetdan.

When news broke that Newcastle had accepted a £35m+ offer from Liverpool for striker Andy Carroll I was intrigued. I said to a friend at the time it was win-win for the club, they either became £35 million richer or kept Andy Carroll.

The deal was finalized close to 11pm GMT and Carroll became the most expensive British player in history.

OK Liverpool fans, he has gone now, get over it. Now that he is officially a Chelsea player the question is can they get the best out of Fernando Torres?

Chelsea fans will scoff at this question. Why wouldn't Chelsea be able to get the best out of him? He is a top player, they are a top club.

Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper Rene Adler has revealed that as a kid he had Manchester United posters all over his bedroom walls.

The club revealed earlier this season that the goalie has a special clause in his contract which specifies that if Manchester United offer the asking price, they have to sell him, so intent is he to his dream of being a United player.