2019 has been a great year for football – from the 2019 Women’s World Cup, which was the best ever women’s World Cup, to Liverpool winning the 2018/2019 UEFA Champions League – it’s been brilliant. However, we’ve also lost a lot of stars across the world of football – here, we remember each and every one of them.
Football stars we lost in 2019
Gordon Banks – Former England goalkeeper and vital member of the 1966 World Cup winning side. The England legend died in his sleep on February 12th following a kidney cancer diagnosis back in 2015.
Justin Edinburgh – Former Tottenham player and manager of Leyton Orient tragically passed during the summer following a cardiac arrest on June 3rd 2019.
Jose Antonio Reyes – Former Arsenal and Real Madrid player.
Bill Slater – Former Wolverhampton Wanderers and England player.
Eric Harrison – Former youth coach of the Manchester United ‘Class of 92’.
Ron Saunders – Former Aston Villa and Birmingham City manager.
Emiliano Sala – Cardiff City and former Nantes striker.
Fernando Ricksen – Dutch international and former fan favourite at Rangers.
Billy McNeil – Former Celtic captain and first ever Brit to lift the European Cup.
Stevie Chalmers – Former Celtic player and scorer of the winning goal in the 1967 European Cup final.
Noel White – Former Liverpool chairman and vice-president of the FA.
Jerry Thompson – Carrick Rangers player.
Eric Caldow – Former Scotland and Rangers player.
Tommy Smith – Former Liverpool player.
Barrie Hole – Former Cardiff, Swansea and Wales player.
Peter Thompson – Former England and Liverpool player.
Jim Smith – Former Derby, Newcastle and Portsmouth manager, known affectionately as ‘The Bald Eagle’.
Bert Mozley – Former Derby County and England player.
Ivor Broadis – Former Sunderland, Newcastle and Manchester City player.
John Dillon – Former Albion Rovers player.
Brian Mawhinney – Former Football League chairman.
Kat Lindner – Former Glasgow City player.
Jordan Dawes – Kent Football United player.
Fred Molyneux – Former Plymouth, Tranmere and Southport player.
Peter Downsbourough – Former Swindon and Braford player.
Ian Young – Former Celtic and St Mirren player.
Roy Cheetham – Former Manchester City player.
Bobby Prentice – Former Hearts player.
Dennis Edwards – Former Charlton player.
Kenny Mitchell – Former Newcastle United player.
Jimmy Fleming – Former Workington and Berwick player.
Bobby Smith – Played for Chelmsford and Barnsley.
Mike Thalassitis – Former Love Island star who played for Stevenage and Cambridge United.
Fred Pickering – Former England star, scored a hat-trick on his international debut.
Stuart Taylor – Former Bristol Rovers player.
Duncan Forbes – Former Colchester and Norwich player.
Tarania Clarke – Jamaica women’s international.
Cyril Robinson – Former Blackpool, Southport and Bradford Park Avenue player.
Ian Macfarlane – Former Chelsea and Aberdeen player. Also managed Sunderland and Leicester.
Phil Masinga – Former Leeds and South Africa player.
Martin Harvey – Former Northern Ireland and Sunderland player.
Mike Barnard – Former Portsmouth player and Hampshire cricketer.
Lawrie Leslie – Former West Ham, Millwall and Scotland player.
Jarzinho Pieter – Curacao international goalkeeper.
Mick Kennedy – Former Portsmouth, Middlesbrough and Ireland player.
Colin Barlow – Former Manchester City player and Chief Executive.
Mike Hughes – Former Chesterfield player.
Tom Brownlee – Former Walsall and Bradford player.
Mike Metcalf – Former Chester player.
Brian Jordan – Former Rotherham player.
Freddie Glidden – Former Hearts player.
Cliff Myers – Former Yeovil and Torquay player.
Joe Fascione – Former Chelsea player.
Matt Brazier – Former QPR, Fulham and Cardiff player.
Danny Williams – Former Rotherham player and Sheffield Wednesday manager.
Denis Hunt – Former Gillingham player.
Arthur Turner – Former Stoke player and Birmingham manager.
Mike Harrison – Former Blackburn, Chelsea and Luton player.
Nigel Saddington – Former Carlisle player.
Johnny Walker – Played for Wolves and Reading.
Duncan Welbourne – Played nearly 500 games for Watford.
Reg Holland – Former Wrexham and England schoolboys player.
Ian Ross – Former Liverpool and Aston Villa player.
John Hellawell – Former Bradford player.
Johnny Valentine – Former Rangers and Queens Park player.
Brian Edgley – Former Shrewbury player.
Graham Newton – Former Blackpool, Walsall and Bournemouth player.
Bobby Doyle – Former Portsmouth, Hull and Barnsley player.
Peter Dolby – Former Shrewsbury player.
Derek Lewin – Represented Great Britain at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne.
Ron Peplow – Former Brentford player.
John Steeples – Former Grimsby player.
Bobby McCool – Former Gloucester and Cheltenham player.
Ted Burgin – Former Sheffield United player.
Kevin Randall – Former Chesterfield, Notts County and York City player.
Kit Napier – Former Brighton, Newcastle and Blackburn player.
Alan Skirton – Former Blackpool and Arsenal player.
Jon Gittens – Former Swindon and Portsmouth player.
Gordon Neate – Former Reading player.
David Harney – Former Grimsby and Scunthorpe player.
Peter Skipper – Former Hull, Walsall and Wigan player.
George Haigh – Former Stockport player.
Charlie Kelsall – Played for Wrexham.
Colin Collindridge – Former Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest player.
Lindsay Parsons – Former Bristol Rovers player.
Willie McPheat – Former Sunderland player.
George Smith – Former Scottish referee.
Geoff Toseland – Former Sunderland player.
Rex Dunlop – Former Workington and Rangers player.
Harry Hood – Former Celtic player.
Alan Smith – Former Arsenal and Brentford player.
Mike Balson – Former Exeter City player.
Barry Hughes – Welsh former football manager.
George Darwin – Former Mansfield and Derby player.
Geoff Lees – Former Bradford player.
Johnny Robinson – Former Bury player.
Bobby Brown – Former Workington player.
Ernie Collumbine – Former Clydebank player.
Dennis White – Former Hartlepool player.
Brian Sparrow – Former Arsenal and Crystal Palace player.
Graham Barnett – Former Port Vale and Tranmere player.
Les Campbell – Former Wigan, Preston and Blackpool player.
Joe Rayment – Former Darlington player.
Bobby Park – Former Aston Villa and Wrexham player.
Bernard Evans – Former Wrexham and QPR player.
Sammy Chapman – Former Mansfield and Portsmouth player.
Peter McConnell – Former Leeds, Bradford and Carlisle player.
Kevin Stonehouse – Former Blacburn, Huddersfield and Darlington player.
Ron Hughes – Former Chester player.
Steve Talboys – Former Wimbledon player.
John Lowey – Former Blackburn and Sheffield Wednesday player.
Doug Clarke – Former Hull player.
Johnny Wheeler – Former Liverpool, Tranmere and England player.
To each of every person who passed in 2019, we will never ever forget you.
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