, who played for Manchester United
and the Northern Ireland national team
. He was a winger whose game combined pace, acceleration, balance, two-footedness, goalscoring and the ability to beat defenders. In 1968, he won the European Cup
with Manchester United, and was named the European Footballer of the Year. When fit, he was an automatic choice for Northern Ireland, but he was unable to lead them to World Cup
qualification, despite being capped
37 times and scoring nine goals.
In 1999, he was voted 11th at the IFFHS European Player of the Century election, and 16th in the World Player of the Century election.
"Pain is temporary, glory...lasts forever!"
"I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered."
"I used to go missing quite a lot... Miss Canada, Miss United Kingdom, Miss World."
[On David Beckham:] "He cannot kick with his left foot, he cannot head a ball, he cannot tackle and he doesn't score many goals. Apart from that he's all right."
"If I had been born ugly, you would never have heard of Pelé."
"In 1969 I gave up women and alcohol. It was the worst 20 minutes of my life."
"Pelé called me the greatest footballer in the world. That is the ultimate salute to my life."
[When W:Michael Parkinson|Michael Parkinson asked how soon before kick-off George had made love:] "Half time!"
"I've stopped drinking, but only while I'm asleep."
[On Paul Gascoigne:] "I once said Paul Gascoigne|Gazza's IQ was less than his shirt number and he asked me: 'What's an IQ?'"