Paul Gascoigne has explained why he infamously joined the hunt for Raoul Moat, saying he wanted to "save" the killer.

The former England football star, known as Gazza, said he believed at the time he was "the best therapist in the world" following his own public battle with drink and drugs.

Moat went on the run for a week in July 2010 after shooting his former partner, killing her new boyfriend and blinding a police officer by shooting him in the face.

Image: A massive police manhunt was launched for Moat in July 2010

In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Gascoigne said he was struggling with his own addiction when he told a taxi driver to take him to Rothbury, Northumberland, where police were hunting for Moat.

"I just remember that I was in a taxi, I had a fishing rod, some chicken, four cans of lager and a fishing jacket," he said.


"I thought that I could take Raoul Moat fishing because he was near a river."

He added: "I was telling the taxi driver I could save him. I told him: 'Listen, I have been through so much, I am the best therapist in the world, I can save him'. I think that I genuinely believed that."

Gascoigne told the newspaper he headed to the police cordon after arriving in Rothbury and began asking: "Where's Moaty?"

Unaware of media reports about his appearance at the scene, he said he later walked into a local B&B and "saw myself on TV, thought 'oh s***'".

Image: Gascoigne said he believed he was 'the best therapist in the world'

Despite telling reporters at the time that Moat was "a good friend", the Daily Mirror reported that Gascoigne had never met the former nightclub doorman.

The ex-Newcastle, Spurs and Lazio star said he woke up to hundreds of texts and missed calls, adding: "I remembered some of it but was trying to forget at the same time."

Moat sparked a massive police manhunt after shooting dead Chris Brown, 29, who had started a relationship with his ex-girlfriend Samantha Stobbart.

The 37-year-old bodybuilder seriously injured Ms Stobbart in the shooting in Birtley, Gateshead, two days after he had been released from prison.

The following day Moat blasted unarmed PC David Rathband in the face, leaving him blind. The officer took his own life in February 2012 after struggling to cope with his disability.

Image: PC David Rathband was blinded after being shot in the face by Moat

The huge search for Moat, involving officers from 18 forces, was one of the biggest police operations seen in the UK.

The rapidly evolving manhunt gripped the nation as newspapers, television and radio stations concentrated on the search, bringing close scrutiny of the police's actions.

Moat, a 17-stone steroid addict, was finally cornered at the edge of the River Coquet in Rothbury on the evening of 9 July 2010.

Following a five-hour stand-off with armed police, the father-of-three shot himself in the head at the moment officers used Tasers to try to disable him. He was later declared dead at a hospital.