What can you say about Paul Gascoigne that hasn't been said already? Arguably the most famous and gifted footballer of his generation, Gazza is no stranger to the back and front pages, both for his footballing achievements and his infamy away from the pitch.

A rapid rise to prominence at his boyhood club of Newcastle gave him the opportunity to move south to Tottenham Hotspur where he became the fully-fledged media darling we know him to be.

The star of the England team during their 1990 World Cup bid that ended at the semi-final stage, Gazza was probably the biggest factor in the explosion of football onto the national consciousness in the early 1990s that prompted the formation of the Premier League and the Sky Sports revolution.

However, his self-destructive nature was laid bare in the 1991 FA Cup Final against Nottingham Forest when he was forced to leave the pitch before 10 minutes were up having ruptured a cruciate knee ligament in a rash and over-exuberant challenge on an opposition player.

A lengthy spell out of the game following extensive surgery on his knee followed and on his return to fitness he signed for Lazio and became a celebrity in Italy. Following three seasons of further injury problems, he returned to the UK for successful campaigns with high-flying Rangers before Middlesbrough boss Bryan Robson brought him back to the Northeast.

Watching him parade his skills at White Hart Lane before tasting the high life in the Serie A with Lazio, winning titles at Rangers and then scoring that wonder goal against Scotland at Euro '96, few Everton fans would ever have thought Gascoigne would end up at Goodison Park.

However, in the summer of 2000, Gazza did just that when his old boss from his Ibrox days effectively rescued his Premiership career by signing him on a free transfer from Middlesbrough. It was seen by many as a mistake; Gascoigne was still having problems with the demon alcohol and was becoming increasingly injury prone during his time at The Riverside.

But Smith ensured that the one-year contract he signed at Everton contained a slew of clauses aimed at protecting the club from embarrassment should Gazza get up to his old tricks again. And from the perspective of his off-the-field persona, the return under Smith's wing did Paul the world of good. Despite a lapse into alcoholism at the tail end of the 2000/01 season which prompted a spell in an Arizona rehabilitation clinic, Gascoigne remained on the straight and narrow, his appearances on the field restricted only by injury.

Indeed, a persistent thigh injury followed by surgery on a hernia kept Gascoigne sidelined for a good deal of his first season with the Blues at a time when his inspiration was badly needed. When he did play, he was hampered by a lack of fitness and the overall malaise that afflicted the team in general.

The following season, 2001-02 saw Gazza featuring more regularly in the first team, mostly through pure necessity as the Blues midfield was decimated by injury and the fall-out of the Thomas Gravesen controversy. However, he was rarely able to provide the inspiration needed to inspire the team to victory; the Blues were crying out for more performances like his virtuoso display against Leyton Orient in the FA Cup 4th Round in January 2002 when he led Everton to a 4-1 victory.

In the main, a lack of stamina was again to blame, allowing Gascoigne to play only in bursts before having to sit a game out to recover in time for another 90 minutes.  With his career coming to and end, he stated a desire to finish his playing days in America's Major League Soccer before going on to become a coach, possibly back at Lazio.

But it was the departure of his friend and mentor, Walter Smith that precipitated his departure from Everton in March 2002, when the prospect of working under the much more demanding David Moyes proved too much for Gazza's delicate condition.  He joined Burnley for the rest of the season.