’90S Heroes: DAVID GINOLA

[Giovanni]

Was there (99 not 97) and was an absolutely wonderful performance. And the goal he scored after being denied by the woodwork, volley with both feet off the ground, imprinted in my mind forever.

Yes you are correct of course! At the time i loved playing football but never really watched it but that game really grabbed my attention. I just had to go back at watch the highlights to refresh some of those moments. I still chuckle now watching the way he picked up the ball on the nearside of the pitch and dribbled right the way across the other side before unleashing the shot, atmosphere sounded electric also.

I do think Ginola is very much one of those players who despite never really having great stats is just great to watch, especially as a youngster.

 

[ralphs bald spot]

I've always been a little meh about Ginola. Very overrated IMO

he was an oasis in a sea of mediocrity is the best description of him - I thought he was fantastic and to be player of the year in a bog average side shows how good he was blimey the poor bloke played with Andy Sinton Freund and co

 

[BringBack_leGin]

Graham subbed him off to protect the lead they equalised made it 3-3 Ginola came out and kicked the hoardings

i remember that well, one of Graham’s most infuriating moments. His treatment is Ginola was despicable.

I've always been a little meh about Ginola. Very overrated IMO

Yes you are correct of course! At the time i loved playing football but never really watched it but that game really grabbed my attention. I just had to go back at watch the highlights to refresh some of those moments. I still chuckle now watching the way he picked up the ball on the nearside of the pitch and dribbled right the way across the other side before unleashing the shot, atmosphere sounded electric also.

I do think Ginola is very much one of those players who despite never really having great stats is just great to watch, especially as a youngster.

Spot on. Ginola did things so good you ended up laughing in disbelief.

 

[CantSmileWithoutYou]

Ginola is a Tottenham God.

 

[Geyzer Soze]

I briefly met the man himself, picking out sunglasses in the Metrocentre in 1995. Bloody massive.

Lube helps

 

[14/04/91]

I've always been a little meh about Ginola. Very overrated IMO

How VERY dare you!

 

[Col_M]

How VERY dare you!

Maybe its an Age thing,

I grew up in the Ardiles/Hoddle/Hazard/Gazza era, so whilst I do think Ginola was a great player, he just always seemed to fall short and YES I appreciate he was surrounded by mediocrity.

 

[BringBack_leGin]

Maybe its an Age thing,

I grew up in the Ardiles/Hoddle/Hazard/Gazza era, so whilst I do think Ginola was a great player, he just always seemed to fall short and YES I appreciate he was surrounded by mediocrity.

I understand why you’d compare him negatively to the those players but I think your final point probably gives him mitigation on that. Hazard couldn’t even cement a place in the side, such was the talent ahead of him, while Ginola was singlehanded trying to polish the turd that was late 90s Spurs. He was putting it on a plate game after game for Ferdinand, Iversen and Armstrong, in a side that was geared up to nick 1-0s, and seeing it all go to waste.

 

[Gassin's finest]

Maybe its an Age thing,

I grew up in the Ardiles/Hoddle/Hazard/Gazza era, so whilst I do think Ginola was a great player, he just always seemed to fall short and YES I appreciate he was surrounded by mediocrity.

Hoddle and Gazza were the ones that first drew me to, and then cemented, my love for Spurs. But Ginola is still for me one of the best pure entertainers of football that the game has seen. Watching him was like poetry.

If not for that cross, he'd have been at Barcelona and starred at USA '94...

 

[ralphs bald spot]

Maybe its an Age thing,

I grew up in the Ardiles/Hoddle/Hazard/Gazza era, so whilst I do think Ginola was a great player, he just always seemed to fall short and YES I appreciate he was surrounded by mediocrity.

I saw those as well and of course they were great players - Ginola a little like Gazza maybe more because the rest of the side was average were great to watch - I thought he was great player - looking back Chris Armstrong would have ruined VAR there would have been no need for it he was continually off side by miles

 

[Gassin's finest]

David speaks about his cardiac arrest, during Sunday's match:

 

[ShelfWatcher]

Loved watching Ginola, one of the players who lit up the 90s for me. Some dark days but we had bright lights like Gazza Dazza Sheringham Klinsmann and Lineker
Though after he became anti Tottenham during Leicester title run, haven't liked him since. But still a great player for us

 

[arthurgrimsdell]

Maybe its an Age thing,

I grew up in the Ardiles/Hoddle/Hazard/Gazza era, so whilst I do think Ginola was a great player, he just always seemed to fall short and YES I appreciate he was surrounded by mediocrity.

The problem I had with him was that he made the mainly less than top quality players around him worse. When he arrived players were making intelligent runs off him because he was making acres of space for them with his runs. They soon realised that was pointless because they would hardly ever get the ball from him.
I found him extremely frustrating. Time and time again he would get the ball, cut across the pitch, gliding past player after player then hoof the ball wide or over the bar. Very occasionally the ball ended in the back of the net and on those occasions the goal was usually very spectacular and gave great joy to all supporters. For children and youths, I don't doubt that sticks in the memory, but the fact that a successful outcome was so rare is why his stats were not that good.
He played for David's enjoyment rather than the team's progression. How many times did he lose the ball, then go down on his knees with arms in the air pleading to the referee then to God for a foul, while the game was still going on? Many many times. He'd only get up if the rest of the team somehow cleared up his mess. Then he would demand the ball again.
Also, in big games he was usually relatively anonymous.
As a Youtube clip player, he was brilliant, but as a 90 minute team player, he wasn't.

However I'm well aware that this view won't go down well at all with some.

 

[Gassin's finest]

The problem I had with him was that he made the mainly less than top quality players around him worse. When he arrived players were making intelligent runs off him because he was making acres of space for them with his runs. They soon realised that was pointless because they would hardly ever get the ball from him.
I found him extremely frustrating. Time and time again he would get the ball, cut across the pitch, gliding past player after player then hoof the ball wide or over the bar. Very occasionally the ball ended in the back of the net and on those occasions the goal was usually very spectacular and gave great joy to all supporters. For children and youths, I don't doubt that sticks in the memory, but the fact that a successful outcome was so rare is why his stats were not that good.
He played for David's enjoyment rather than the team's progression. How many times did he lose the ball, then go down on his knees with arms in the air pleading to the referee then to God for a foul, while the game was still going on? Many many times. He'd only get up if the rest of the team somehow cleared up his mess. Then he would demand the ball again.
Also, in big games he was usually relatively anonymous.
As a Youtube clip player, he was brilliant, but as a 90 minute team player, he wasn't.

However I'm well aware that this view won't go down well at all with some.

Correct, you miserable sod

 

[ralphs bald spot]

unbelievable it might be 20 years to late but I can't believe you wrote that n - he was wonderful player and carried a poor side

The problem I had with him was that he made the mainly less than top quality players around him worse. When he arrived players were making intelligent runs off him because he was making acres of space for them with his runs. They soon realised that was pointless because they would hardly ever get the ball from him.
I found him extremely frustrating. Time and time again he would get the ball, cut across the pitch, gliding past player after player then hoof the ball wide or over the bar. Very occasionally the ball ended in the back of the net and on those occasions the goal was usually very spectacular and gave great joy to all supporters. For children and youths, I don't doubt that sticks in the memory, but the fact that a successful outcome was so rare is why his stats were not that good.
He played for David's enjoyment rather than the team's progression. How many times did he lose the ball, then go down on his knees with arms in the air pleading to the referee then to God for a foul, while the game was still going on? Many many times. He'd only get up if the rest of the team somehow cleared up his mess. Then he would demand the ball again.
Also, in big games he was usually relatively anonymous.
As a Youtube clip player, he was brilliant, but as a 90 minute team player, he wasn't.

However I'm well aware that this view won't go down well at all with some.

There is always one - You are having a bubble - wonderful footballer Ginola carried that side - he played the game for the supporters a joy to watch Ginola - PFA player of the year when he was with us voted by the other players most of them aren't kids or youth - you don't win that by hiding and not cutting the mustard he was unbelievable . Scored great goals got you on the edge of the seat when he won that award he was consistently brilliant

 

[BringBack_leGin]

The problem I had with him was that he made the mainly less than top quality players around him worse.

Just not true. Chris Armstrong and Steffen Iversen shared 28 goals between them almost purely off the back of Ginola’s work in his final season. For comparison, that’s the best combined total Keane and Berbatov every got.

When he arrived players were making intelligent runs off him because he was making acres of space for them with his runs. They soon realised that was pointless because they would hardly ever get the ball from him.

There was not one player in that squad who knew what an intelligent run was. The amount of beautiful crosses Ginola put in game by game to see then squandered was horrifying. He ended up hogging the ball because if he didn’t, we’d never get into the opposition half as our midfield was a who’s who of mediocre journeymen.

the fact that a successful outcome was so rare is why his stats were not that good.

Or just the aforementioned dross he was surrounded by.

He played for David's enjoyment rather than the team's progression.

He played for the fans, and that’s what we absolutely needed during that miserable time.

How many times did he lose the ball, then go down on his knees with arms in the air pleading to the referee then to God for a foul, while the game was still going on?

No worse than all your run salt of the Earth homegrowns like Gerrard, Shearer and Owen, and he took more of a kicking than the rest of them combined. That semi where Wimbledon set up to batter him could’ve ended his career.

Also, in big games he was usually relatively anonymous.

In big games we were relatively anonymous. He did singlehanded my get us to the FA Cup semi in 1999 with his performances in the last 16 and quarters, but once faced with a top side one good player is just not enough.


In short, your post couldn’t be further from the truth.

 

[spursgirls]

Loved watching Ginola, one of the players who lit up the 90s for me. Some dark days but we had bright lights like Gazza Dazza Sheringham Klinsmann and Lineker
Though after he became anti Tottenham during Leicester title run, haven't liked him since. But still a great player for us

He was very much pro Tottenham at the dinner he, and I, was at a couple of weeks ago.

 

[spursgirls]

unbelievable it might be 20 years to late but I can't believe you wrote that n - he was wonderful player and carried a poor side

There is always one - You are having a bubble - wonderful footballer Ginola carried that side - he played the game for the supporters a joy to watch Ginola - PFA player of the year when he was with us voted by the other players most of them aren't kids or youth - you don't win that by hiding and not cutting the mustard he was unbelievable . Scored great goals got you on the edge of the seat when he won that award he was consistently brilliant

PFA and Football writers award!

 

[ShelfWatcher]

He was very much pro Tottenham at the dinner he, and I, was at a couple of weeks ago.

Yeah, but where it counts in the public media he was massively pro Leicester, and he's put in a few digs in since, for example against Kane
I try to avoid watching him now. But if he starts being pro Spurs publicly, maybe I'll start liking him again. But to be honest it will take me a long time to get over the mass media betrayal of us in the Leicester season. And for me as a previous Spurs fan his stance hurt maybe the most

 

[jurgen]

So he's going on 'I'm a Celebrity'....

Thought Wayne Bridge would be bricking it at the prospect of being cuckolded for a second time given his wife is also on it, but then I saw Daveed's other half..