Jimmy Armfield

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Jimmy Armfield
Jimmy Armfield, 2012 (cropped) .jpg
Jimmy Armfield (2012)
Personnel
Surname James Christopher Armfield
birthday September 21, 1935
place of birth Denton , Greater ManchesterEngland
date of death 22nd January 2018
Place of death BlackpoolEngland
position Defender (right)
Men's
Years station Games (goals) 1
1954-1971 Blackpool FC 569 (6)
National team
Years selection Games (goals)
1959-1966 England 43 (0)
Stations as a trainer
Years station
1971-1974 Bolton Wanderers
1974-1988 Leeds United
1 Only league games are given.

James Christopher "Jimmy" Armfield (born September 21, 1935 in Denton , Greater Manchester , † January 22, 2018 in Blackpool ) was an English football player . The world-class defender played for Blackpool FC from 1954 to 1971 . With the national team , for which he competed 43 times between 1959 and 1966, he took part in the world championships of 1962 and 1966 . In the 1970s he coached Bolton Wanderers and Leeds United , with whom he was defeated in the 1975 European Cup against Bayern.

Athletic career

Shortly after his birth in Denton, which is on the outskirts of Manchester , he moved to Blackpool , which would remain his home for a long time. In 1952, home Blackpool FC became aware of Armfield and initially employed him as an amateur. His performances on the position of the right full back convinced the then coach Joe Smith , so that Armfield received his first professional contract in September 1954.

On December 27 of the same year, when Armfield was still doing his military service as a private in the British Army, he made his debut in the 3-0 defeat by Portsmouth FC . After an overall mixed first season, he was able to win the runner-up with his club in the 1955/56 season. In 1956 Armfield then played for the first time for the English U23 selection.

The first game for the English national team followed on May 13, 1959, when the team lost 2-0 to Brazil in front of 120,000 spectators in the Brazilian Maracanã Stadium . In the same year he was named the best young player.

When Blackpool went through a difficult time in sport in the 1960s and was sometimes only able to prevent relegation with difficulty, Armfield remained loyal to his club and was decisive for staying up through his strengths in tackling , his fighting ability and the talent to motivate his teammates jointly responsible. These characteristics ensured that he was given captaincy both in Blackpool and in the national team.

At the 1962 World Cup in Chile , he was voted the tournament's best right defender, but was eliminated with England in the quarter-finals against Brazil. Internationally, he continued to receive awards for his achievements between 1962 and 1964 and received the title of Europe's best right- back for three consecutive years .

During the 1966 World Cup in his own country, he was in the squad, but was not used due to injuries and was successfully represented by George Cohen from Fulham FC . He was unable to add any more to his 43 internationals, with which he is Blackpool's record international player to this day. In the election to England's Footballer of the Year 1966, he finished just behind Bobby Charlton in second place.

Another setback followed with Blackpool when the club relegated to the second division at the end of the 1966/67 season. After two seasons in this class, he managed to get promoted again with his club in 1970 and he ended the following year on May 1, 1971 in a 1-1 draw against Manchester United after a total of 626 competitive games for Blackpool, his career as a footballer.

Coaching career and other occupations

In 1971 Armfield took over the sporting direction of the third division Bolton Wanderers as coach, led the club after two years in the second division and in 1974 was able to receive the class there with Bolton.

From the seventh day of the 1974/75 season onwards, he replaced the disgraced Brian Clough at English champions Leeds United, who were in 19th place , and led the club to the final of the European Cup after beating FC Barcelona in the semifinals against FC Bayern Munich in Parc des Princes in Paris . Leeds United lost that game 2-0. Armfield reached positions 9, 5, 10 and 9 in the league with Leeds United until 1978. At the beginning of the 1978/79 season, the Scot Jock Stein was first his successor, but was soon replaced by Jimmy Adamson .

After this time Armfield took various short-term engagements for the Football Association , now worked regularly as a radio commentator and was known for his game summaries at the BBC .

Armfield continued to live in Blackpool and was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2000 and Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 2010 .

successes

  • Soccer world champion: 1966

Web links

Commons : Jimmy Armfield  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Anna Cryer: Blackpool FC legend Jimmy Armfield dies after cancer battle . Blackpool Gazette, January 22, 2018, accessed January 22, 2018.