Trevor Francis dies aged 69 as football mourns loss of Britain's first £1m player
Trevor Francis has died at the age of 69
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Former England star Trevor Francis has died at the age of 69.
The striker, who played 52 games for his country between 1977 and 1986, played for teams such as Birmingham City, Nottingham Forest, Manchester City, Rangers, QPR and Sheffield Wednesday during his playing career.
Francis scored 15 times during his debut season in football and, back in 1979, became Britain's first £1million player when he joined Nottingham Forest.
At the times, eyebrows were raised due to the finances involved.
Trevor Francis became Britain's first £1million player
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But Francis would end up being worth the money, firing Forest to two European Cups in succession during his time there.
No English side have since managed that feat.
The former striker was also on target in the first final, scoring as Forest battled their way to the prize past Swedish side Malmo.
He later said of the goal: "It was a magical moment. I used to write a column for the Roy of the Rovers comic and this was my own Roy of the Rovers moment.
"A European debut in a cup final and scoring the winning goal. Nobody had ever done that, had they?"
Francis would proceed to play for Manchester City in 1981.
And he also had spells abroad in Italy, too, turning out for Sampdoria and Atalanta during his time there.
Francis returned to Britain in 1987 with Rangers before later becoming player-manager of Queens Park Rangers.
He also managed Sheffield Wednesday, leading the Owls to a third-placed finish back in 1992.
The following year, Francis was able to guide Sheffield Wednesday to two cup finals where they lost twice to Arsenal.
And he was dismissed by the club a year later, with Francis proceeding to manage Birmingham.
His final managerial role was with Crystal Palace.
Reacting to Francis' passing, former England team-mate Viv Anderson said: "Just heard the unbelievable news regarding Trevor Francis.
"He was such a wonderful person and fabulous teammate he will be sadly missed, my condolences go to his family and friends RIP."
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His close friend Gary Newbon told The Sun: "This is obviously a terrible shock for Trevor and his family and friends.
“He was revered throughout football and has his place assured in the history of the game.
“But he was also an incredibly kind and popular man, who will be greatly missed by so, so many people.”
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