Pranks lurked around every corner but Thomas Doll loved his time playing alongside Paul Gascoigne at Lazio.

Gascoigne made a high-profile switch from Tottenham to the Roman club in 1992, his star still riding high in Italy after his superb performances inspired England's run to the semi-finals of the 1990 World Cup.

However, he had since endured a year of rehabilitation from a cruciate knee ligament injury sustained during the 1991 FA Cup final and fitness woes were a constant during Gascoigne's stay in the Italian capital, which ended when he joined Rangers in 1995.

Germany international Doll played for Lazio between 1991 and 1994 and he has fond memories of his fellow midfielder – a figure as popular in the dressing room as he was on the terraces.

"Paul was a real team player and a real good guy who found himself comfortable very quickly because of his humour and also because of his class," the told Stats Perform.

Doll explained himself, compatriot Karl-Heinz Riedle, Netherlands midfielder Aaron Winter and Gascoigne palled around as Lazio's foreign legion, but no one in the dressing room was safe from the Englishman's trademark sense of humour.

"Paul was a joker for everybody," he recalled. "For example, he tied the shoelaces of the players together or he crashed interviews while only wearing his underwear and such things. There were so many stories about him."

Doll also painted the picture of a selfless figure who remains much-loved by supporters in his retirement.

"He was very kind to the young players," he added.

"When he was in England, he sometimes brought back CD players and donated them to the young players, or he picked them up if they had no car at that time.

"He was a totally crazy guy, but the whole team liked him very much."