Paul Gascoigne almost let a phone call from The Pope pass him by, before greeting him with a remarkable opening line.
‘Gazza’ catapulted himself to superstardom thanks to his performances with England at Italia ’90 – with fans, media, and fellow celebs all chasing him up in search of conversation. But one call in particular, which took place at Tottenham Hotspur’s training ground, stood out to Gascoigne among the rest.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football, Gascoigne recalled: “It wasn’t just [fans and journalists], it was from famous people as well. I was getting calls from George Clooney, Dustin Hoffman, Oprah Winfrey.
“I was getting calls from everywhere. The best one was I got told there was a phone call and I said ‘tell them to f*** off, I’m training’. They said ‘you better take the phone call’. I said, ‘no I’m training, tell them I’ll call them after my training’. They said it was important so I said, ‘who the f*** is it?’
“They said it was The Pope, John Paul II.” In hilarious fashion, Gascoigne let his thick Geordie accent loose when answering the phone to His Holiness, adding: “I picked up the phone and went, ‘Hi Pope, you alreet?’ I said, ‘hiya Pope, what do you want?’ He said, ‘come to the Vatican, I want to meet you’.
“My Dad’s a Catholic. We went over and saw The Pope, it was unbelievable.” He added: “When you’re getting calls like that and then I’m getting Mike Tyson coming to Dunston, where I live, wanting to come to my 40th birthday party. It was just crazy.”
It comes as Pope Francis passed away on Monday at the age of 88. The successor to Pope Benedict XVI – who in turn replaced Pope John Paul II in April 2005 – Pope Francis‘ death was confirmed by Cardinal Kevin Ferrell, the Vatican camerlengo. He had suffered health issues for several months after he was admitted to the Gemelli hospital in Rome for treatment for Bronchitis in February, which developed into double pneumonia.
Sharing a statement at the Casa Santa Marta, the Cardinal said: “Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis. At 7.35am, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father.
“His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of His Church. He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially in favour of the poorest and most marginalized. With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the One and Triune God.”
Gazza, meanwhile, enjoyed a number of incredible highs over the course of his career – from representing his boyhood club of Newcastle United to winning the FA Cup with Spurs. However, he confessed as a youngster that he would never be able to top the highs of playing for England at Italia ’90.
Reflecting on being booked in the semi-finals against West Germany – which meant he would have missed the final of the competition if England made it through – he said: “Obviously, I broke down crying. I think most of it wasn’t just because of the yellow card – I swear down I had probably the best time of my life.
“I’m someone that loves football and every day I’m training with the guys non-stop.” He added: “Coming back to a hero’s welcome was incredible and I cried my eyes out for about an hour. Thinking, ‘this is where I used to play as a young kid and I’ve just come back from the World Cup’.”
After a 1-1 draw with West Germany, England were omitted from the competition on penalties, before they were bested to a third-place finish by the hosting nation.
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