In 1988, Paul Gascoigne is a shining light in English football, a lovable young Geordie from a working-class background whose broad smile and extravagant skills are an antidote to the hooliganism that has beset the game over the previous decade. When he moves to London to join Terry Venables' Tottenham Hotspur for a British record transfer fee in July of that year, it pushes him firmly into the national spotlight.
In 1993, as England's campaign to qualify for the next year's World Cup gets underway, the pressure is very much on Paul Gascoigne to lead them there. But behind the scenes, Gazza's life is once again falling apart amid problems in his relationship with girlfriend Sheryl and a very public betrayal by his personal assistant, who reveals his deepest, darkest secrets to the world. This is soon followed by another serious career-threatening injury.
