Dion Dublin fights back tears when paying tribute to Cyrille Regis who sadly passed away on Monday aged 59

DION DUBLIN fought back the tears during an emotional tribute to his "all-time footballing hero" Cyrille Regis.

The former West Brom and England tragically passed away aged 59 on Monday of a suspected heart attack.

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Regis, who was a pioneer for black footballers, was idolised by Dublin and the pair were close friends.

The BBC paid a wonderful tribute to Regis before Chelsea's FA Cup encounter with Norwich in which Dublin made a moving speech.

Dublin, 48, fought the emotions when he said: "There was something about Cyrille that myself and Brian Deane, Wrighty (Ian Wright), Les Ferdinand, we were the players that looked at those kind of players and thought we want to play, we want to be like you.

"Cyrille Regis was my hero, all I wanted to do was play like him.

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"I used to watch him all the time and if it wasn't for him I would never have become a professional footballer."

Viewers took to Twitter to share their respects for both Regis and Dublin with Norwich legend Darren Huckerby leading the way.

The retired striker said: "The big fella Dion Dublin did well to get through that."

Rory Jennings wrote: "Incredibly powerful words from Dion Dublin there. Great character to hold it together."

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Another viewer commented: "Dion Dublin so emotional talking about Cyrille Regis legacy on match of the day and rightfully so.

"Regis paved the way for all black players to play professional football in this era."