Welcome back to It Was What It Was, the football history podcast. Co-hosts Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper continue on from last week’s episode with Jan Fjortoft to delve into how things went wrong for Graham Taylor during his time as England manager. In this second part of a four part series we take a look at the high of Italia ’90 to the early warning signs of Graham Taylor’s troubled England reign, setting up the wider story of his eventual downfall. Central to the episode is Paul Gascoigne’s rise into “Gaza mania,” the off-field chaos and disciplinary problems that followed, including the 1991 FA Cup final knee rupture and subsequent setbacks. Taylor struggled to manage both the player and the circus around him. England qualified for Euro 1992 but drew twice, lost to Sweden and Taylor’s substitution of Gary Lineker became emblematic as tabloid ridicule culminate in a reputational collapse for Taylor.
01:05 The Impossible Job Era
07:39 Referees And Rotterdam
12:47 Italia 90 Reality Check
20:02 Gaza Mania Begins
25:31 Euro Qualifiers Begin
28:24 Ireland Away Selection
30:08 Taylor Press Tightrope
35:48 Cup Final Knee Rupture
41:46 Euro 92 Sweden Turning Point
42:55 Lineker Sub Controversy
47:50 Fitness Gap And Refuelling
49:32 Turnip Taylor Tabloid Sting