Gary Lineker
England 3 Poland 0 1986 World Cup, Mexico
As Gary Lineker led England onto a bobbly pitch in Monterrey in June 1986, his life was about to change forever. With his country’s World Cup dream close to breaking point, Lineker stepped up as the saviour of Bobby Robson’s team…
I don’t remember too many games that I played in; that’s the truth. Often, one of my goals will pop up on Twitter and unless it was one of the rare times I got one from outside the box or a really important goal, I will look at it and have no recollection. It will be like seeing it for the first time.
I don’t recall too much about my international debut, and as for my first England goal against the Republic of Ireland, I just about remember a chipped finish at Wembley. My first Clasico asa Barcelona player was incredible, and winning the FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal and then the final against Nottingham Forest with Spurs in 1991 was special. But the one game that changed my life forever was against Poland in the 1986 World Cup finals.
The idea of playing in a World Cup was a dream for me, but it didn’t really live up to what I imagined when I got to Mexico.
The pitches were terrible – bare in places – and the heat was oppressive, the stands were empty in a lot of the stadiums. This was not what we were expecting as England players going to a World Cup. If this was the ultimate dream, it wasn’t quite living up to the billing.
Losing to Portugal and drawing with Morocco in our first two matches added to the sense that this was a nightmare unfolding before our eyes. Bryan Robson was injured, Ray Wilkins was sent off for throwing the ball at the referee and I injured my wrist.
In truth, Bobby Robson could have dropped me for the Poland game. I had not played well in the first two matches and the media were calling for changes. But he stuck with me and it was the last chance for all of us to deliver: lose again and we were going home in disgrace.
I remember walking out of the tunnel and the heat was incredible. I just turned around and went back in. It was not a great environment to try to save a World Cup, but the first goal went in for me, then the second, then the third.
A World Cup hat-trick, a big win and suddenly everything around the squad changed. The atmosphere lifted, the pressure disappeared and we were on our way to the knockout stages.
That was ground zero for my career.
Playing in a World Cup was a dream for me, but it didn’t really live up to what I imagined when I got to Mexico
I went from being a player who was well known in England to being well known around the world. Barcelona ca meinto sign me after I won the Golden Boot. My Dad was happy on a number of levels - especially because he had money on me at 14/1 to finish as top scorer. We beat Paraguay in the next round before the Argentina game that will always be remembered for one man: Diego Maradona.
Who knows what would have happened if we were not up against the greatest player I had ever seen at that point? But Maradona was just incredible that day, unstoppable. Take the handball out of the equation and his performance was just mesmeric, out of this world. He was on a different level to everyone at that World Cup.
From feeling like we were going out in the groups to coming home frustrated we hadn’t won the tournament was a huge swing in emotions, but that is what the World Cup can do.