Anthony Guy ("Tony") Cascarino made his name as a striker for various British and French football clubs and for the Republic of Ireland. Since retirement, he has presented on TalkSPORT radio and written for both The Times and Ireland's Hot Press Magazine.
Having originally planned to be a hair-dresser, Cascarino joined Gillingham in 1982 from Crockenhill FC, for a transfer fee of a set of tracksuit tops and some corrugated iron. He went on to play for Millwall, Aston Villa, Celtic and Chelsea. However, his most successful years were with Olympique de Marseille and Nancy in the French Ligue 2.
Cascarino was born in England but represented the Republic of Ireland, qualifying through his Irish grandfather. However, he later revealed that his mother told him in 1996 that she was adopted and therefore no blood relative to the grandfather. Cascarino said in his autobiography: "I didn't qualify for Ireland. I was a fraud. A fake Irishman". However, through the adoption his mother gained the right to Irish citizenship and therefore he was indeed eligible.
Cascarino scored nineteen goals in eighty-eight international appearances, his aerial prowess fitting well with the long ball style of the team. Cascarino was an integral part of the teams that took part in the European Championship in 1988 and World Cups in 1990 and 1994.
Cascarino produced an autobiography, which received great critical acclaim.
Extremely forthright by the standards of sports autobiographies, the book detailed his love of gambling, particularly playing all forms of poker, and revealed that his career had been blighted by crippling self-doubt, which he summarised as the "little voice". The book also candidly refers to his shame over own infidelities and of leaving his wife, Sarah and two sons, Michael and Teddy (who was named after Cascarino's former team-mate Teddy Sheringham) and muses: "...maybe, just maybe, I was so wrapped up in my newfound celebrity that I'd become immune to the suffering I was causing".
He also revealed that during his time at Marseille, he and many other of the club's players were injected by club president Bernard Tapie's personal physician with an unknown substance. The physiotherapist at the time insisted the substance was legal and would provide an "adrenaline boost". Cascarino claimed that most players accepted the injections and that "it definitely made a difference: I felt sharper, more energetic, hungrier for the ball".
Since retiring from football, Cascarino has become a semi-professional poker player, having appeared in the television series Celebrity Poker Club and commentating on the PartyPoker Poker Den.
courtesy wikipedia
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