THINK AGAIN

Gerrard urges Hall of Fame to reconsider Gazza decision

STEVEN GERRARD last night hit out at the decision to withdraw Paul Gascoigne’s nomination for the Scottish Football Hall of Fame — and urged organisers to reconsider the Ibrox legend in future. The Rangers manager — who insists Gazza was his England idol — admitted he was saddened to see the controversy unfold during the international break. Proposed by the public and chosen by a selection committee, the 51-year-old was due to be honoured with a Hall of Fame place at Hampden in recognition of his three years at Ibrox. However, as Sportsmail revealed, some SFA board members were preparing to boycott the gala induction dinner because of concerns about whether Gascoigne’s troubled off-field past made him a suitable candidate. Hall of Fame organisers then decided to officially shelve the nomination, citing ‘concerns over the state of Paul’s health’. Gerrard feels that was the

wrong call and expressed hope it will be reversed in the future. ‘I was disappointed with the decision,’ said the Ibrox boss. ‘I don’t know if you’ve read my autobiography, but from that book it’s clear he was my hero. ‘He was my England hero growing up. I had Johnny Barnes and Ian Rush at Liverpool and Gazza for England. ‘The 1990 World Cup was the first one I followed and he was terrific in that competition. He was one of the best players in the world at the time. I bought the shirts, the videos. ‘I was gutted for him and, for me, it’s the wrong decision — he should be in there. Hopefully one day they see sense and it gets resurrected. ‘I can guarantee the people who have decided not to put him in were on the edge of their seat, the edge of their couch, jumping round when he was on TV. ‘If they are football people, they would have enjoyed watching Paul Gascoigne and they would appreciate the man as a footballer. He should be in.’ Then a young Liverpool player, Gerrard recalled locking horns with Gascoigne during his post-Rangers spells at Middlesbrough and Everton. ‘Our living room stopped when Gazza was on the box and I was lucky enough to share a pitch with him and compete against him,’ he added. ‘I was lucky enough to have conversations with him and what a man, what a player. ‘Did he ever give me advice? It was an elbow the first time I met him! I think he was letting me know what it was all about. ‘I was only a youngster playing against him and it was just “wow” for me to be on the same pitch as him. To grace the same turf as Gazza, who was my hero, was unbelievable. ‘I exchanged text messages with him a couple of months back. He just said to me: “I am on Instagram, you better follow me, hurry up!” So I did exactly that.’