Nobby Stiles, a member of the 1966 English World Cup team, died at the age of 78.
His circle of relatives said he died peacefully after a long illness.
Stiles played every minute of the victorious crusade of 1966 and was credited with keeping Portuguese legend Eussebio silent in the semi-final.
His post-match birthday party after Wembley’s final, in which England beat West Germany 4-2, saw him hold the World Cup trophy in one hand and dentures in the other.
Stiles is also part of the Manchester United team, which has become the first English club to win the European Cup two years later by beating Benfica in the final, at Wembley.
Nationally, the midfielder league titles were tightly tackled with the Red Devils in 1965 and 1967.
Another member of the 1966 England team, Sir Geoff Hurst, said Stiles “is the center and soul of the team,” adding that it is “extremely sad” to be informed of his death.
Former England goalkeeper Peter Shilton said Stiles “is a wonderful user whom I admire very much. “
Manchester United said their former player is a “titan of the club’s history, loved for his centre and personality on and off the field. “
Stiles was born in a World War II airstrike at Collyhurst, Manchester, in May 1942, accepting learning situations with United in 1959.
After leaving Old Trafford in 1971, he moved to Middlesbrough and Preston.
Middlesbrough said Stiles, nicknamed the “Toothless Tiger,” “one of the most colorful characters to ever wear our shirt. “
He directed Preston from 1977 to 1981, the Vancouver Whitecaps from 1981 to 1984 and West Bromwich Albion between 1985 and 1986.
West Brom tweeted: “Goodbye to the ultimate smile in English football. Rest in peace, Nobby. “
Stiles returned to United as coach of the sir Alex Ferguson youth team in 1989.
He was diagnosed with dementia later in life and, after a mini stroke in 2010, sold his medals to leave anything to his family.
United bought them for 200,000 euros and they’re from the club museum.
Analysis through Martha Kelner, sports correspondent
The symbol of Nobby Stiles parading through Wembley, dentures in one hand and Jules Rimet trophy in the other, is one of the greatest joyful in english football history.
The odds opposed Stiles, making him a footballer; Born in the basement of the relative circle house that has become a World War II air-raid shelter, he was very short-sighted and only five feet and six inches tall.
But it was his difficult entry, tenacity and team spirit that earned him 28 games for England and a European Cup with Manchester United.
He also led the reign of Sir Alex Ferguson in Old Trafford, mentoring the elegance of ’92, adding David Beckham and Gary Neville.
But his circle of relatives felt he had been let down by the club and the circle of football relatives as a total later. Financial difficulties forced him to sell the medal and memories of his World Cup winner at an auction in 2010.
He also developed the first effects of dementia at age 61, a ruthless disease that stole his speech towards the end.
Your family circle needs more studies on the link between footballers and neurological diseases. A 2019 study found that former professional football players were 3. 5 times more likely to develop dementia than the general population.
But Stiles’ relatives say the search deserves to have arrived faster and had an even wider reach. With his death, football may be forced to decide whether he failed one of his most prominent children.