Tottenham Hotspur and England’s legendary footballer Jimmy Greaves passed away at home in the early hours of Sunday morning, aged 81.
Throughout his wonderful playing career, Jimmy’s strike rate was phenomenal. His Spurs return was 266 goals in 379 appearances between 1961 and 1970 – 220 goals in 321 league games, 32 goals in 36 FA Cup ties and five in just eight League Cup ties and nine in 14 European matches. He’s also Spurs’ highest scorer and the highest-scoring player in the top flight of English football, with 357 goals to his name. The 37 league goals that he netted in the 1962/63 season remains to this day Spurs record by any player in a single season.
A member of England’s 1966 World Cup-winning squad, Jimmy also scored 44 goals in his 57 senior international appearances, with 42 of those caps – and 28 goals – won while a Spurs player.
Born in East Ham on February 20, 1940, Jimmy’s career started in the junior ranks at Chelsea where he turned professional in May 1957. He scored on his Blues debut – something which would become a familiar trait throughout his playing days – ironically against Spurs at White Hart Lane on August 24, 1957, in a 1-1 draw.
He remained at Stamford Bridge until June 1961, when he moved to AC Milan, and his 41-goal haul in the First Division in 1960/61 still stands as Chelsea’s record for a single season.