Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? The Spurs Nostalgia Podcast

We open Season 3 exactly where we left Season 2 with a forensic review of the near-fatal 97/98 campaign. I was re-joined by Julie Welch and Rosa as we explored Christian Gross' declining relationship with ALL his players, Jurgen Klinsmann's heroic return but why we still hovered just above the relegation zone.

Rosa tells us about her vivid memories of a wonderful Salvation Saturday in South London and there's also a dive into late 90s mainstream culture too.

This episode kicks off Season 3. Make sure you check the back catalogue to listen to Spurs' entire 90s journey!

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Season 3 begins with a step back from White Hart Lane and a look at the bigger picture. Between 1997 and 2001, English football changed faster than at any point in its modern history — TV money exploded, foreign managers reshaped the league, Bosman transformed player power, and the Premier League’s first corporate superclubs emerged.

To understand why Spurs stagnated while Arsenal, Chelsea and others accelerated, Gareth is joined by Wall Street Journal journalist and co‑author of The Club, Jon Clegg. Together they explore the forces that reshaped English football at the turn of the millennium: Manchester United’s commercial revolution, Wenger’s tactical and cultural overhaul, Chelsea’s foreign‑led transformation, Leeds’ high‑risk spending, and the shifting fortunes of Liverpool, Newcastle, Blackburn and more.

This episode sets the stage for everything that follows in Season 3 — the Gross era, the identity crisis, the George Graham shock, the Ginola years, the Worthington Cup run, and the club’s struggle to keep pace with a league accelerating around it.

A wide‑angle look at the Premier League’s evolution — and the context behind Spurs’ magic, mayhem and mediocrity from 1997 to 2001.

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Terry Venables has appeared throughout this podcast in fragments — the fall‑out with Alan Sugar, the 1993 dismissal, the echoes of his influence on players and coaches who passed through White Hart Lane. But until now, we’ve never told his story in full. Not the Spurs chapter, not the England chapter, not the Barcelona chapter — the whole story.

In this special standalone episode, recorded outside the usual season structure, I’m joined by journalist and author Tim Rich, whose new biography If I Can Dream: The Life of Terry Venables is the definitive portrait of one of English football’s most fascinating, contradictory and compelling figures.

Tim takes us through Venables’ extraordinary life:

• the South Wales childhood that shaped his imagination

• the polymath instincts — singer, novelist, entertainer, coach

• the Barcelona years, the La Liga title, and the heartbreak of Seville

• the England tenure that ended with the nation wanting more

• the business ventures, the insecurities, the ambition, the charm

• the Tottenham connection — as player, manager, dreamer, and almost‑owner

We talk about the myths, the misunderstandings, the brilliance, and the flaws. We explore the people Tim interviewed, the people he couldn’t, and the parts of Venables’ story that have never been told properly. And we reflect on why Venables remains such a magnetic figure for Spurs fans — even decades after his departure under a cloud.

This isn’t a retread of the Sugar–Venables saga.

It’s a full 360° look at the man behind the myth.

If you grew up with Terry Venables, if you remember Euro 96, if you remember the swagger of 1987–91 Spurs, or if you simply want to understand one of the most intriguing characters English football has ever produced, this episode is for you.

And if you want the complete story, Tim’s book If I Can Dream is essential reading.

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Season 3 of Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? is nearly here — and in this short preview Gareth sets the scene for the next act in our Spurs nostalgia journey.

We’ve just closed the curtain on the mid‑90s: Ardiles’ idealism, Francis’ pragmatism, Sheringham’s brilliance, Klinsmann’s fleeting magic, and a White Hart Lane beginning to take on its final familiar shape. Now we step into a new era — one defined by identity, upheaval and the rapid transformation of English football.

Gareth explains how Season 3 picks up exactly where Season 2 left off: Christian Gross clutching his Tube ticket, Spurs sliding towards relegation, and the club losing its grip on who it was supposed to be. We’ll revisit the fear and confusion of 97/98 with Julie Welch and Rosa, before moving into one of the most controversial moments in modern Spurs history — the appointment of George Graham. A cultural shock, a clash of values, and a moment where Spurs arguably sacrificed identity in pursuit of stability.

In the middle of it all stands David Ginola, the embodiment of what supporters believed Tottenham Hotspur should be: flair, artistry, romance. Season 3 explores that tension — identity versus pragmatism, style versus structure, Spurs versus the direction of English football itself — with a trophy win along the way.

Gareth also previews the brilliant guests joining him this season, including David Pleat, Bardi, Pete Abbott, Rocco Dean, Steve Cavalier and more, plus the two “Heroes & Villains” episodes that will close the year: Sugar & Ginola, then Hoddle & Campbell.

If you’re new to the show, every episode covering 1989–1997 — season reviews, player interviews, deep dives into the big themes and characters — is available in the back catalogue. And Gareth’s books Hotshot Tottenham and Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? are also available for anyone wanting even more from the era.

Season 3 begins with a macro look at English football between 1997 and 2001, landing next Monday during the international break. Episodes then drop every Wednesday right through to Christmas. A bonus episode with Tim Rich, author of the new Terry Venables biography If I Can Dream, arrives this Friday.

Subscribe, follow, and settle in — Season 3 is going to be a journey.

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In the 1990s, following Spurs from overseas meant creativity, patience and a lot of luck. In this episode, Gareth speaks to two long‑standing supporters whose experiences reveal just how different football fandom looked before the digital age.

Steff moved from London to the United States in 1986 and found himself in a footballing desert. No live matches, no radio, no newspapers covering English football — just the occasional cup final on satellite TV and the hope that an Irish pub might be showing something. His stories include missing most of the Gascoigne era, hunting down broadcasts across California, and receiving a VHS tape of the 1991 FA Cup semi‑final from his mum, watched for the first time on a tour bus with Napalm Death..and of course savouring live THAT goal at Leicester in 1997!

Kjetil’s experience in Norway was almost the opposite. English football had been broadcast live since the 1970s, and Spurs were one of the most‑shown teams. Erik Thorstvedt became a national hero, supporters’ clubs flourished, and fans built their own magazines and communities. Yet travelling to London still came with risk — postponed matches, ticket hunts, and the sheer scale of navigating a foreign city in the pre‑internet era.

This episode is a celebration of dedication, nostalgia and the global reach of Spurs long before the world became connected.

Gareth’s books Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? and Hot Shot Tottenham are available here:

https://90sspursbook.square.site/

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Opening day in the 1990s wasn’t just a fixture — it was a feeling.

In this special bonus episode of Is Gascoigne Going Gonna Have a Crack?, I’m joined by Jonny Blain (An Echo of Glory) to explore the sights, sounds and rituals that made the first weekend of the season so magical.

To mark the opening day of the 26/27 season this episode focuses on the pre-season build up and opening days from the 90s. From Shoot and Match magazines to the Match Team Tracker, from Saint & Greavsie to Soccer Saturday, from sunshine and short sleeved shirts to chasing scores on Teletext or the World Service, this is a celebration of how football returned each August.

Across the 90s, Spurs kicked off 11 times: 5 wins, 3 draws, 3 defeats — but the results were almost secondary. Opening day grew up with us, from childhood excitement to teenage ritual, and this episode captures that journey with stories of holidays, radios, early Sky Sports, new kits, new signings and the optimism that only the first day can bring.

Whether you’re a Spurs fan or simply love 90s football culture, this is a warm, nostalgic trip back to a time when the summer was quiet, the season felt new, and everyone started level again!

If you’ve enjoyed this trip back into 90s football nostalgia, you might also like the books I’ve written — Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? and Hotshot Tottenham. Both dive even deeper into the stories, memories and characters that shaped Spurs across the 90s and 80s respectively.

You can find them over at my website: https://90sspursbook.square.site/

Thanks for listening — and we’ll be back soon with more Spurs nostalgia very soon!

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Andy Turner’s Spurs story captures the texture of early‑90s football: a 17‑year‑old winger unexpectedly breaking into Terry Venables’ first‑team plans, scoring a winner at White Hart Lane, and then finding himself part of the most unusual competition Spurs ever entered — the 1995 Intertoto Cup.

Andy only played in one of the four Intertoto games, but his memories of the trip to Cologne are rich and revealing: the intimidating atmosphere, the world‑class opposition, the makeshift Spurs squad, and the surreal feeling of being treated like a first‑team player in a competition the club didn’t take seriously.

Alongside that story, Andy reflects on his wider Spurs journey — the broken leg that nearly derailed his youth career, the thrill of his Premier League debut, the encouragement he received from senior players, and the injuries that shaped the rest of his footballing life.

This episode blends nostalgia, honesty and one of the strangest footnotes in Spurs’ history.

You can find my book Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? here:

https://90sspursbook.square.site/

And you can learn more about the documentary being made about Andy here:

https://www.lifegoalsdocumentary.co.uk/

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Season Two closes with Part One of our deep dive into the 1997/98 campaign — a season that began with hope, glamour and new signings, and quickly descended into one of the most turbulent autumns in Spurs’ modern history.

Gareth is joined by Rosa (Hometown Glory) and Dame Julie Welch to revisit the first three months of the season: the arrivals of Les Ferdinand and David Ginola, the legacy of David Howells, the emotional fallout from Teddy Sheringham’s departure, and the indifferent start that saw Gerry Francis leave the club in November.

And then came his successor — Christian Gross — whose arrival at Heathrow brandishing an Underground travelcard instantly became Premier League folklore.

This episode blends football, nostalgia and culture, with Rosa and Julie sharing vivid memories of university life, marathon training, Teletext letters, and the emotional rollercoaster of following Spurs in the late 90s.

Part Two will open Season Three in September, picking up the story as Spurs enter a dramatic and near‑catastrophic six‑month period that ultimately ends in euphoric relief at Selhurst Park.

You can find Gareth’s books Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? and Hot Shot Tottenham here:

https://90sspursbook.square.site/

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I was joined by Gerry Francis, our longest serving manager of the 90s, to relive life in the dugout at White Hart Lane. Gerry talks candidly about working with Alan Sugar, his enormous pride at managing Spurs and his role in the incredible 94/95 season.

Gerry discussed the myth that he turned down the chance to sign Dennis Bergkamp as Klinsmann's replacement, signing Ginola and the way that English football was going as the 90s progressed.

Gerry also talks about managing his son's severe OCD.

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Gareth is joined by David Harris (Grumpy Old Spurs podcast) to revisit the 1996/97 season — the year when Spurs’ mediocrity didn’t just begin, it fully took hold.

This was a truly forgettable campaign: a summer so underwhelming we couldn’t even complete the signing of Tony Thomas from Tranmere, followed by a season that opened — and continued — with relentless frustration.

We explore a year defined by:

• Gary Mabbutt’s season‑ending double leg break after 18 minutes of the opening game
• A squad ravaged by injuries: Nethercott, Anderton, Armstrong, Sheringham — all sidelined early
• A team that never won three consecutive games and drifted aimlessly in mid‑table
• The nadir: an eight‑day winter collapse featuring
• last‑minute heartbreak at Highbury
• a 6–1 humiliation at second‑tier Bolton in the League Cup
• the infamous moment when even our own turf turned on us against Liverpool
• A season so thin that Spurs began 1997 with their 6th and 7th choice strikers starting away at Manchester United
• The surreal contrast of moving into a world‑class training ground while the team on the pitch fell apart
• And, incredibly, how David’s early legal career helped set in motion the chain of events that would lead to Sol Campbell’s departure four years later

All of this unfolds against the backdrop of Euro 96 optimism, Britpop fading, Oasis at Knebworth, Trainspotting, Spice Girls, Gazelles, Fred Perrys — and Spurs feeling older and more tired than the country around them.

As ever, we tackle this largely miserable season with the levity, irreverence and gallows humour that 96/97 absolutely deserves.

If you want to explore Spurs’ journey through the 1980s and 1990s, Gareth’s books Hot Shot Tottenham and Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? are available here:

https://90sspursbook.square.site

(and via Amazon in hardback and e‑book formats).

Please follow the podcast and leave a rating — it really helps.

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