ITALIA 90

It’s more than a quarter of a century ago, but GED BARNES still cherishes the memory of his first World Cup

Recalling a great tournament

THE saying goes that you always remember your first and, in stark contrast to England’s performances in recent tournaments, the World Cup of 1990 lingers fondly in the memory for many a football fan born in the early 1980s.

From the rousing ‘ Nessun Dorma’- inspired opening titles on the BBC, to the hugely addictive spin-off game on the Mega Drive, Italia 90 ticked all the right boxes for a young Mancunian currently falling in love with the national game.

Of course nostalgia can often cloud memories and experiences, particularly where sport is concerned, but football was in a vastly different place over 25 years ago when Bobby Robson’s Three Lions headed off to Italy. Indeed, there are many that believe football simply didn’t exist before the Premier League was founded in 1992!

Domestically, Liverpool had just kept Aston Villa at bay to win their 18th League title and maintain their dominance of English football, while a young(ish) Alex Ferguson led Manchester United to their first major trophy under his stewardship by defeating Crystal Palace at Wembley.

Personally, I had first flirted with the game of football just a few weeks prior to the FA Cup final, after watching Manchester United and Oldham play out a thrilling 3-3 draw in the semi.

I was just six years old but, added to the highlights of the previous match earlier that day in which Crystal Palace defeated Liverpool 4-3, I had suddenly found the one thing that would cause me huge highs - and disastrous lows - during my early days.

It may be a struggle to find many six-yearolds becoming hooked on any performance by United these days but, as previously stated, these were very different times.

From a neutral perspective, the 1990 World Cup didn’t exactly set the world on fire in terms of excitement and attacking play. The tournament ‘boasted’ the lowest goals-per-game ratio of any World Cup, and eight of the knockout matches went to extra-time, with four going to penalties. The latter record wouldn’t be equalled until the 2014 World Cup.

In a complete role reversal to recent tournaments however, it was the England team that captured the public’s imagination. Led by national treasure Bobby Robson, England were a strong unit built around some of the most passionate men ever to pull on the famous white shirt.

Captained by the brilliant Bryan Robson, England boasted a defence that contained football legends such as Stuart Pearce and Des Walker, both League Cup winners with Nottingham Forest, and Paul Parker, who was soon to become the proud owner of a Premier League winner’s medal.

Terry Butcher’s head injury against Sweden during qualifying became one of the iconic images of English football, heightening his reputation as one of football’s toughest opponents.

England also possessed some brilliant attacking players. Chris Waddle was football’s third most expensive player when he moved to Marseille for £4.5 million in July 1989, whilst John Barnes was a league winner with Liverpool, even if he was burdened internationally by the expectation of his 1984 wonder-goal against Brazil.

Peter Beardsley had won two league titles and one FA Cup prior to the 1990 World Cup, even if this achievement was slightly tarnished in the eyes of Liverpool fans after his 1991 move to Goodison Park.

The two stand-out players during the tournament and in the years that followed were, of course, Gary Lineker and Paul Gascoigne.

Lineker’s achievements were phenomenal. Not only had he won the Golden Boot at the 1986 World Cup, he subsequently won the Copa Del Rey and the European Cup Winners’ Cup with Spanish giants Barcelona.

He regularly scored more than 20 goals a season throughout his career, beginning at everyone’s current favourite team Leicester City. His goals for Tottenham prior to the tournament ensured that Spurs finished third, so he was full of confidence going into the tournament.

His team-mate at Spurs, midfielder Paul Gascoigne, was a perfect foil for the striker. Relatively inexperienced at just 23 years of age,‘Gazza’ was a mercurial talent who created (and continues to create) headlines for all kinds of reasons. Many still believe that Gascoigne is one of the finest talents that this country has ever produced. Despite Lineker scoring just eight minutes into the tournament, England struggled and drew with both the Republic of Ireland and Netherlands in their first two matches.

An assist from Gazza meant that Mark Wright’s header was enough to see off Egypt in their third match, and saw England through to the knock-out stages.

The last 16 tie against Belgium was a tense affair, before a moment of brilliance from David Platt - up there with Zidane’s volley against Leverkusen in my opinion - lined up a quarter-final against Cameroon - the surprise package of the tournament.

Now it was Lineker’s time to shine, as two penalties sealed a 3-2 win, again after extra-time. A gut-wrenching semi-final against West Germany was next, quite literally for my younger brother who was squeezed within an inch of his life by my Mum after Lineker swivelled and rifled in England’s equaliser in Turin. Gazza’s weren’t the only tears that night.

The sight of a young Gascoigne welling up after receiving a yellow card, and suspension for the World Cup final, is the most iconic image of the 1990 World Cup.

Team-mate and friend Lineker pointing to the bench in support of Gascoigne was an image that too became engrained on English football’s consciousness.

An absolute emotional roller-coaster of a match was decided as, not for the first time, England failed in a penalty shoot-out. Lucky for me, my Mum had sent me to bed after 90 minutes. If only she’d have followed the same protocol during the following 24 years…

Italia 90 was brilliant. It had everything - emotion, great goals, dramatic conclusions and memorable characters. Most importantly of all, it had pride; the pride of the players, the pride of the fans, and the pride of England.

Will we ever see such pride in the national side in today’s financially driven game?

If so, Dele Alli and Harry Kane certainly have a lot to live up to.