Quite simply, Gazza could not even begin to deal with the adulation he received.
Gazza loyalists recall nostalgically that high-profile drinking binges have not impaired their man's performance in the past.
In the same year Gazza bawled his eyes out at the World Cup.
Since his move to Liverpool from Everton, where he played alongside Gazza, Xavier is proud to have won over the Anfield fans.
As if to underline the incestuous tangle of celebrity Britain, the obvious successors to both Gazza and Miss Halliwell are engaged to be married.
In terms of column inches expended, Gazza has easily outdone Geri.
I, for one, would like to hear Lineker, Hanson and Gazza on where it all went right or wrong - not on the pitch but in the examination hall.
In Gazza's absence, the creative mantle in the English team is likely to fall on David Beckham, a Manchester United midfielder, soon to marry one Victoria Adams, also known as Posh Spice.
But whereas before the 1996 European championships Gazza's off-field antics had been interspersed with brilliant displays on the pitch, in the run-up to this year's World Cup he has seemed slow and struggling.
Sir Bobby Robson claimed Gazza was as "daft as a brush" and his immature behaviour and naivety was excused because it was seen as central to his desire to be the subject of the attention and affection he craved.
Robson has consistently backed a man he regards as one of the biggest talents this country has produced in a generation, but matters now seem to have come to a head and may not bode well for Gazza's future with Boro.
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