Jimmy Greaves dead at 81: Tottenham & Chelsea tributes to England’s ‘greatest ever striker’ as footballer passes away

RIP GREAVSIE

The English footie world is still mourning the death of the late Jimmy Greaves, who passed away last Sunday aged 81.

Tributes for England's fourth all-time leading goalscorer are continuing to pour in - a testament to how much he was loved.

Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker said of the late Greaves: "Jimmy had a fabulous contribution to football, an incredible goalscoring record.

"He was devilishly funny as well with his wit and personality, so charismatic. But on the field of play people will remember him most.

"Those of us that are old enough to have witnessed his magnificence at times, he could score all sorts of goals and was a beautifully graceful footballer and a wonderful finisher.

"For me, Jimmy was one of my heroes as well. Growing up watching him play we didn't have the amount of games on television that we now do but I managed to see him play a few times.

"I also was fortunate enough to meet him on numerous occasions and he was always affable and fun and hugely knowledgeable. He was a great personality, a wonderful footballer and a man with huge charisma and fun and he will be much missed."

Greaves is survived by his wife Irene, their four children plus their 10 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

MILAN ALSO PAY TRIBUTE

Italian giants AC Milan have also paid tribute to the late Jimmy Greaves.

Greaves, who passed away aged 81, scored nine goals in 14 appearances for the Rossoneri.

SAINT AND GREAVSIE

Footy fans across the world have been digging up old footage of the Saint and Greavsie show following the news of Jimmy Greaves' passing.

And this clip is just a small testament as to how funny he and Ian St John were together.

QUICK OFF THE MARK

Jimmy Greaves didn't need long to get off the mark for West Ham, finding the back of the net a mere ten minutes into debut against Manchester City.

ROUND OF APPLAUSE

The entire Tottenham Hotspur Stadium paid tribute to the late Jimmy Greaves ahead of Spurs' Premier League clash with Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.

DOG WHISPERER

Jimmy Greaves wasn't just a great goalscorer, he also had a way with animals.

In England's 1962 World Cup clash with Brazil, Greavsie managed to woo and stray dog that had run onto the pitch.

Check out the video below.

SOME OF JIMMY'S BEST BITS

BT Sport have shared a snippet of some of the late Jimmy Greave's best bits following the news of his tragic passing.

TUBE TRIBUTE

London Underground workers at Seven Sisters station took the time to write a classy tribute to the late Jimmy Greaves before Tottenham's match against Chelsea.

'DEEPLY SADDENED'

The Football Association were among the many to pay tribute to the late Jimmy Greaves following the news of his death aged 81.

An excerpt of their statement read: "We’d like to express our sorrow at the sad news of former England international and FA Cup winnner Jimmy Greaves’ death.

"The former Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United striker was one of the most successful players of his generation and his passing at the age of 81 was announced today.

"A member of England’s World Cup winning squad in 1966, he won a total of 57 caps and scored 44 goals for the Three Lions between his debut in 1959 and his final appearance in 1967.

"That ratio makes him the fourth-highest goalscorer in England records and the only player to have scored six hat-tricks for the Three Lions."

'NOBODY WHO COULD TOUCH HIM'

Sir Geoff Hurst has also paid tribute to his late England team-mate, Jimmy Greaves.

He said: "There have been some great players but forwards are judged on goals, and there's nobody who could touch him.

"I am asked is there any animosity between Jimmy and I, because I took his place? But not for one second.

"You hear the term genius, and it is the one word which applies to Jimmy."

PAYING TRIBUTE

Tottenham legends Ossie Ardiles, Gary Mabbutt, Ledley King, Paul Allen, Martin Chivers, Micky Hazard, Glenn Hoddle, Steve Perryman and Graham Roberts were pitchside before Spurs' Premier League clash with Chelsea to pay tribute to the late Jimmy Greaves.

GOALSCORING MACHINE

English footy legend Jimmy Greaves was one of the nation's most prolific players, scoring a whopping 466 goals in 661 appearances.

PAYING THEIR RESPECTS

Tottenham will honour the late Jimmy Greaves with a minute's silence before this afternoon's match with Chelsea.

SOUTHGATE PAYS TRIBUTE

England manager Gareth Southgate has also paid his respects to the late Jimmy Greaves.

He said: "Jimmy Greaves was someone who was admired by all who love football, regardless of club allegiances.

"I was privileged to be able to meet Jimmy's family last year at Tottenham Hotspur as the club marked his 80th birthday.

"My thoughts are with them and I know the entire game will mourn his passing."

GIANT OF THE SPORT

Gary Lineker described fellow England great Jimmy Greaves as "possibly the greatest striker"; this country has ever seen.

Lineker added that Greaves was a true "giant" in the world of football.

The Match of the Day host also paid tribute to the man behind the footballer by describing the striker as "charismatic, knowledgeable, witty and warm" person.

More below:

GREAVES' WORLD CUP

Jimmy Greaves enjoyed tremendous success throughout his career, but perhaps none of it compares with him being part of England's 1966 World Cup -winning team.

However, Greaves was sidelined from the competition after picking up an injury in the group stages and was replaced by Geoff Hurst, who turned out to be one of the Three Lions' biggest hero.

The legendary striker said years later: "I danced around the pitch with everyone else but even in this moment of triumph and great happiness, deep down I felt my sadness.

“Throughout my years as a professional footballer I had dreamed of playing in a World Cup final.

"I had missed out on the match of a lifetime and it hurt"

GREAVES STATS

Jimmy Greaves is one of the greatest players in the history of the game and the stats prove it.

From his Chelsea debut in 1957 until his final game for West Ham in 1971, Greaves scored a whopping 422 goals in 602 appearances across all club competitions.

The legendary striker scored 132 goals in 169 games for Chelsea, which means he boasted a phenomenal rate of 0.78 goals per game.

Greavsie then netted 266 times during a scintillating nine-year stint at Tottenham and became the club's all-time leading scorer.

The former England international also registered 44 goals in just 57 caps for his national team

THE BEST

Liverpool legend and Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher called Jimmy Greaves the best goalscorer "we have seen".

Carragher also paid tribute to the legendary Saint & Greavsie show, which he described as the best ever football show.

Greaves used to co-host a popular football show with fellow footballer Ian St John

TRUE LEGEND

Glenn Hoddle described fellow Tottenham legend Jimmy Greaves as "a true legend of the game".

Hoddle tweeted: Such sad news this morning on Jimmy's passing .

"A true legend of the game , love and thoughts to all of Jimmy's family"

ARDILES STATEMENT

Tottenham legend Ossie Ardiles said fellow club legend Jimmy Greaves "epitomises" what Spurs are all about.

Ardiles tweeted: "RIP Jimmy. Great player, great man. Very funny. Humble. Jimmy epitomises what Spurs is: "To dare is to do"…

""When you come to meet the great goalscorer in heaven it matters not if you win or lose but how you played the game".

"My prayers and thoughts with his family and friends"

ARSENAL RESPECTS

Arsenal are “deeply saddened” after hearing the news of Tottenham great Jimmy Greaves’ passing.

The Gunners stated that their thoughts are with Greaves’ family and friends.

Here’s what the north Londoners tweeted:

MORE FROM FA

The FA also paid tribute to Jimmy Greaves' success in the FA Cup, a trophy he won twice.

The statement read: "Greaves scored in their [Tottenham] 1962 FA Cup Final victory over Burnley at Wembley and while he didn't score in Spurs' 1967 Final victory over Chelsea, he was the competition's top scorer in that season with six goals from his eight appearances.

"In total, he netted a remarkable 42 goals in 57 appearances in the FA Cup during his career.

"Following his retirement, Greaves became known to a new generation of football fans in his position as a TV presenter on the ‘Saint and Greavsie’ weekly magazine show.

"Manor Park-born Greaves was awarded an MBE for his services to football in the 2021 New Year's Honours list, alongside his former England teammate Ron Flowers"

CHELSEA TRIBUTE

Chelsea paid a touching tribute to club great Jimmy Greaves.

Greaves enjoyed major success at the Blues where he spent four years after earning promotion from the youth side.

In total, the legendary centre-forward notched 124 league goals in 157 top-flight appearances for the west Londoners.

The England international left Chelsea in 1961 for AC Milan

FA STATEMENT

The FA paid tribute to Jimmy Greaves' long list of accomplishments.

"We’d like to express our sorrow at the sad news of former England international and FA Cup winner Jimmy Greaves’ death.

"The former Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United striker was one of the most successful players of his generation and his passing at the age of 81 was announced today.

"A member of England’s World Cup winning squad in 1966, he won a total of 57 caps and scored 44 goals for the Three Lions between his debut in 1959 and his final appearance in 1967.

"That ratio makes him the fourth-highest goalscorer in England records and the only player to have scored six hat-tricks for the Three Lions.

"He’s also Spurs’ highest scorer with 266 goals and the highest-scoring player in the top flight of English football, with 357 goals to his name"

BECKHAM REACTS

Manchester United great David Beckham paid tribute to fellow legend Jimmy Greaves.

Beckham described Greaves as one of the players he loved watching in action when he was young.

The former England international also stated he was one of his grandfather’s favourites.

Beckham shared the following story on his Instagram: