RIP Trevor Francis Soccer

[Dylan]

Former England forward Trevor Francis has died aged 69 after suffering a heart attack in Spain.

Sad news. A very good player and one of the names you associate with the history of English football.

In 1979 he became Britain's first £1m footballer when he moved from Birmingham City to Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest.

He won two European Cups with Forest - in 1979, when he scored the winner against Malmo, and 1980.

Francis also won 52 England caps, scoring 12 goals, before embarking on a managerial career.

A statement released on behalf of his family said: "This has come as a huge shock to everybody. We are all very upset.

"He was a legendary footballer but he was also an extremely nice person."

Born in Plymouth, Francis joined Birmingham as a schoolboy and was the Blues' then-youngest debutant in 1970 aged 16 - a record only beaten by current England and Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham in August 2019.

Francis went on to score 119 goals in 280 league appearances before his history-making switch to link up with Clough at Nottingham Forest.

After Forest's two European Cup wins, he joined Manchester City before having spells with Italian clubs Sampdoria and Atalanta.

A season in Scotland with Rangers followed before he joined QPR, where he also became player-manager.

What he did with Nottingham Forest was simply amazing.

 

[Crabtree]

One of those guys that you've not heard about for a while but obviously being the first million pound player and winning what he did with Forest (scoring the winner in the final), a very famous footballing name in the UK.

 

[Ghost]

Great player and character, another one lost. Sad day.

 

[Tom]

"In 1979 Trevor Francis became the first British footballer to command a £1 million transfer fee when he moved from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest."

Sad one this - great player, a genuine world-class player and always came across as a decent bloke

 

[Son Of Jack]

Wonderfully talented and stylish player.

As a pundit he always seemed truly objective, his comments were based on what he saw and what he knew - there was never any agenda or favoritism.

 

[David76]

One of the names in football which stands out not just because he was the first British million-pound transfer but because he was a fantastic world-class player and a nice guy too.

 

[Black Sheep]

What a player, pace in his day, and a football star.

To be honest, I can't remember much about his managerial career. I always enjoyed him as a pundit and co-commentator.

You really got the impression that he loved and had a real passion for the game of football as was evidenced by the way he played and spoke about it.