Terry Neill

Terry Neill
Personnel
Surname	William John Terence Neill
birthday	May 8, 1942
place of birth	Belfast ,  Northern Ireland
size	178 cm
position	Central defender
Men's
Years	station	Games (goals) 1
1958-1959	Bangor City
1959-1970	Arsenal FC	241 (8)
1970-1973	Hull City	103 (4)
National team
Years	selection	Games (goals)
1961-1973	Northern Ireland	59 (2)
Stations as a trainer
Years	station
1970-1974	Hull City (player-manager)
1971-1975	Northern Ireland
1974-1976	Tottenham Hotspur
1976-1983	Arsenal FC
1 Only league games are given.

William John Terence "Terry" Neill (born May 8, 1942 in Belfast , Northern Ireland ) is a former Northern Irish football player and coach .

Player career

In his youth, Belfast-born Terry Neill played for Bangor City and moved to London in 1959 to work for Arsenal . Already on his debut against Sheffield Wednesday in December 1960, he scored a goal and quickly established himself in the central half position (English: "center half") in midfield, which was later interpreted more defensively in a central defensive position (he also came still used as a full-back). Both in the club and later in the Northern Irish national team , he quickly became the team captain and, at the age of only 20, was the youngest player in the history of Arsenal FC. Overall, he was used in 255 games for Arsenal and 59 international matches for Northern Ireland.

Towards the end of the 1960s, Neill became more and more prone to injury and he suffered from jaundice , which he missed the 1969 League Cup final - Arsenal lost 3-1 to Swindon Town there . Although he was only 28 years old, he decided in July 1970 to turn his back on top division football and signed a contract in the second-rate Second Division at Hull City . There he worked as a player- coach, making him one of the youngest coaches in the history of English football. Later he was in charge of the Northern Irish national team - also at a comparatively young age. In 1973, Neill decided to end his playing career for good and left Hull a year later to take over from Bill Nicholson as coach at Tottenham Hotspur - Arsenal FC's fiercest local rivals .

Coaching career

He looked after the "Spurs" over two seasons and was only just able to avoid relegation in his first year. Since the second season had only ended in midfield, it was a surprise that the management of Arsenal FC decided in 1976 to select Neill as Bertie Mee's successor and the youngest coach in the club's history. With the new signings Malcolm Macdonald and Pat Jennings , however, the team was able to find their way back to their old strength and reached three FA Cup finals in a row between 1978 and 1980 , with only the 1979 final being won 3-2 against Manchester United . Under Neill's direction, the club reached the final of the European Cup Winners' Cup and lost there on penalties against FC Valencia . However, these successes could not be confirmed in everyday league life and after the departure of decisive players - such as Liam Brady and Frank Stapleton - and the injury-related failure of Malcolm Macdonald, the sporting perspective developed very negatively. It is also assumed that Neill had problems dealing with established players - such as Alan Ball , who left the club shortly after Neill's arrival, and long-standing supporters and sympathizers, such as George Armstrong , threw it out. After a regular series of cup failures in the early 1980s - including most recently the league cup defeat against FC Walsall on November 29, 1983 - the club's management dismissed him on December 16 of the same year.

Neill then withdrew completely from the football business and opened sports bars in Hendon and Holborn - located in central London.

successes

• FA Cup Winner: 1979 (as coach)

Web links

• Photo by Terry Neill