Paul Gascoigne’s friend has spoken out after finding him in a semi-conscious state and rushing him to hospital on Friday evening. The 58-year-old was discovered by Steve Foster, who is also his driver and personal assistant, and he is now said to be in a stable condition.
Gascoigne has received support from family, friends and football legends after Foster found him in the bedroom of his home in Poole, Dorset. Gazza went into intensive care but he has since been moved into an acute medical care unit at a local hospital, and he is expected to receive further treatment over the course of several more days.
Foster said: “Paul is in hospital, which is the best possible place for him to be right now. [He would] like to thank everyone for the support he’s received so far from so many old friends who wish him well and want to see him back to his best.”
Known affectionately as ‘Gazza’, the former England midfielder had a glittering career which took in spells with Newcastle United, Tottenham, Lazio and Rangers, among other teams.
His long struggle with alcoholism began towards the end of his playing days and worsened after he retired from the professional game 21 years ago.
Gascoigne’s health scare comes only months after he delivered the following positive health update to The Mirror: “I feel better now than I have in years. I hope I am at a point that I can look back over everything I’ve gone through with a different, more positive, perspective. After so many years in the spotlight, I feel like it’s time people got to know the real me.”
Last year, Gascoigne admitted on the High Performance podcast that he was living in the spare room of his former agent, Katie Davies, who is now believed to have stepped back from his day-to-day life.
“I used to be a happy drunk, I ain’t anymore,” he said. “I’m a sad drunk. I don’t go out and drink, I drink indoors. If I want to make it a bad day, go down the pub. If I want it to be a good day, I get my flying rod out and go fishing.
“It’s not the drinking, it’s the afterwards. Looking at my phone after and seeing 30 messages or missed calls, I know I’m in trouble. But I’ve been alright. Last year [2023] wasn’t brilliant, I was off and on for a couple of months.”