Colin Bell (soccer player, 1946)

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Colin Bell
Colin Bell 1969.jpg
Personnel
birthday February 26, 1946
place of birth Hesleden ,  England
date of death January 5, 2021
position midfield
Juniors
Years station
Hordes of Colliery Welfare Juniors
Men's
Years station Games (goals) 1
1963-1966 Bury FC 82 0(25)
1966-1979 Manchester City 394 (117)
1980 San Jose Earthquakes 5 00(0)
National team
Years selection Games (goals)
1968-1975 England 48 00(9)
1 Only league games are given.

Colin Bell , MBE (born February 26, 1946 in Hesleden , † January 5, 2021 ) was an English football player . The offensive midfielder completed a total of 48 games for the English national football team between 1968 and 1975 , scoring nine goals. He also formed a successful trio with Francis Lee and Mike Summerbee at his long-time club Manchester City .

life and career

Born in 1946 as the son of a miner in Hesleden, County Durham , Colin Bell was the team captain of English second division FC Bury at the age of just 17 . During the 1965/66 season he then moved for £ 45,000 to league rivals Manchester City, who was coached by Joe Mercer during this time . For this club Bell made his debut on March 19, 1966 in a 2-1 win against Derby County and at the end of the season he was promoted to the English first division.

In his first season in the elite class Bell succeeded in addition to relegation and a place as a regular in the team in the game against Stoke City, his first and only hat trick . In the second first division season 1967/68 Manchester City then surprisingly won the English championship and Bell played a decisive role in this in the position of playmaker and due to his strengths in passing and the game overview. Bell's successful season was rounded off by his debut for the English national team on May 22, 1968 in a friendly against Sweden .

The 1968/69 season was sobering and Bell was only able to earn thirteenth place in the championship together with Manchester City. In addition, the club was eliminated in the first round of the European Cup against Fenerbahçe Istanbul . At the end of the season, however, the club was able to rehabilitate and Bell won the FA Cup after a 1-0 final victory over Leicester City .

Just a year later, Bell expanded his trophy collection and, in addition to his first league cup (against West Bromwich Albion in the final), won the European Cup Winners' Cup after victories against Athletic Bilbao and FC Schalke 04 , defeating Górnik Zabrze 2-1 in the Vienna final . Bell was also appointed to the squad for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico and was also used there sporadically. He was part of the team that lost 3-2 to the team from Germany in the quarter-finals after extra time , where he came on for Bobby Charlton after 70 minutes .

After a mediocre season Bell was able to intervene again with Manchester City in the 1971/72 season in the fight for the English championship and ended with only one point behind the champions from Derby County in fourth place. At the European Championships in 1972 he failed with England after completing the two-way leg again to the German team.

After three more years, in which, despite continued good performances, he was unable to lead the club to any further titles, Bell was seriously injured in the 1975/76 season at the age of only 29. The incident took place in the League Cup match against Manchester United when Scot Martin Buchan Bell injured his knee. Bell was sidelined for over two years and attempted a comeback on Boxing Day 1977. However, he could not build on the previous form and always had to struggle with health setbacks. He then ended his time with Manchester City at the end of the 1978/79 season and after five games in the American professional league for the San José Earthquakes in 1980, his career as a footballer for good.

Then Bell was active as a supervisor for the youth player area of ​​Manchester City and became a representative of the club after completion of this activity.

Because of his services to English football, Bell was awarded the Order of the British Empire as an MBE at the turn of 2004/05 .

He died in early January 2021 after a brief illness at the age of 74.

successes

  • European Cup Winners' Cup: 1970
  • English champion: 1968
  • FA Cup winner: 1969
  • League Cup Winner: 1970, 1976

Others

  • Because of his stamina, Bell was nicknamed Nijinsky (after the racehorse of the same name ). He is also known to fans as the King of the Kippax , with Kippax referring to a covered grandstand of the old Maine Road Stadium.
  • The west stand of the newly built City of Manchester Stadium was named after Colin Bell.

Web links

Commons : Colin Bell  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual proof

  1. ↑ a b sak / dpa: Colin Bell is dead. In: Spiegel Online . January 6, 2021, accessed January 6, 2021 .
personal data
SURNAME Bell, Colin
SHORT DESCRIPTION English soccer player
DATE OF BIRTH February 26, 1946
PLACE OF BIRTH Hesleden, County Durham
DATE OF DEATH January 5, 2021