George Graham (born 30 November 1944), nicknamed "Stroller", is a Scottish former football player and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

. In his successful playing career, he made 455 appearances in England's Football League as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

or forward for Aston Villa,

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

, Arsenal, Manchester United,

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

and

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

. Approximately half of his total appearances were for Arsenal, and he was part of the side that won the Football League Championship and

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

"double" in 1971. Graham also made 17 appearances for

California Surf The California Surf were an American soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1978 to 1981. The team was based in Anaheim, California and played their home games at Anaheim Convention Center and the Long Beach ...

in the NASL in 1978. He then moved to the coaching staff at Crystal Palace, before joining former Palace

Terry Venables Terence Frederick Venables (born 6 January 1943), often referred to as El Tel, is an English former football player and manager, and an author. During the 1960s and '70s, he played for various clubs including Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Queen ...

as a coach at

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

. As a manager, he won numerous honours with Arsenal between 1987 and 1995, including two league titles (in 1989 and 1991), the 1993 FA Cup, two Football League Cups (in 1987 and 1993), as well as the 1994

European Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...

and also managed

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, eas ...

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

and

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

. He was one of the most successful managers in Arsenal's history, remaining in charge for almost a decade until he was sacked by the club's board after being found guilty by

the Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world a ...

of taking money from transfers; Graham was banned despite paying back the money, which he always claimed was an "unsolicited gift".

Early life

The youngest of seven children, Graham was born at Dykehead Road,

Bargeddie Bargeddie (; gd, Bàrr Geadaidh) is a village in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, just inside the suburban fringe of Glasgow, east of the city centre, and close to the junction of the M73 motorway, M73 and M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorways. The n ...

, near

Coatbridge Coatbridge ( sco, Cotbrig or Coatbrig, gd, Drochaid a' Chòta) is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. Along with neighbouring town Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Airdrie, Coatbrid ...

on 30 November 1944. He grew up in poverty and was raised by his mother, Janet (26 April 1908 – 27 March 1977), after his father, Robert Young Graham (born 22 June 1900), died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

and heart failure on

Christmas Day Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...

1944, when George was not yet a month old.Interview: George Graham on tough upbringing and spending £1000 on shoes
The Scotsman, 13 October 2018 His elder sister also died of tuberculosis on 22 February 1950. When growing up, Graham showed considerable promise as a footballer, and Newcastle United,

and Aston Villa displayed an interest in signing him.

Playing career

Aston Villa

Graham received offers from Aston Villa,

and Newcastle United aged 15, in 1959, and visited all three clubs to see their facilities. He chose Aston Villa mainly as he and his family liked manager

Joe Mercer Joseph Mercer, OBE (9 August 1914 – 9 August 1990) was an English football player and manager. Mercer, who played as a defender for Everton and Arsenal in his footballing career, also went on to manage Aston Villa, Manchester City and Engl ...

, initially playing for their youth side, he signed professionally in 1961, on his 17th birthday. He spent five seasons at the

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

club, but only made ten appearances – though one of them was the club's

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

final loss to

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Sin ...

Chelsea

Chelsea signed Graham in July 1964 for £5,000. He scored 35 goals in 72 league games for the club and won a League Cup medal in 1965 but he, along with several other Chelsea players, increasingly clashed with their volatile manager

Tommy Docherty Thomas Henderson Docherty (24 April 1928 – 31 December 2020), commonly known as The Doc, was a Scottish football player and manager. Docherty played for several clubs, most notably Preston North End, and represented Scotland 25 times betw ...

. This culminated in Graham and seven others being sent home and disciplined by Docherty for breaking a pre-match

curfew A curfew is a government order specifying a time during which certain regulations apply. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to ''not'' be in public places or on roads within a certain time frame, typically in the evening and ...

in 1965.

Arsenal

Bertie Mee Bertram Mee OBE (25 December 1918 – 21 October 2001) was an English footballer who played as a winger for Derby County and Mansfield Town. Mee was also a manager, noted for leading Arsenal to their first Double win in 1971. Playing career Bor ...

's Arsenal were looking for a replacement for

Joe Baker Joseph Henry Baker (17 July 1940 – 6 October 2003) was an England international footballer. Born in Woolton in Liverpool, England, he spent virtually his entire childhood growing up in Motherwell, Scotland. He is notable for being the first ...

, and paid £50,000 plus

Tommy Baldwin Thomas Baldwin (born 10 June 1945) is an English former footballer who played in The Football League for Arsenal, Chelsea, Millwall, Manchester United and Brentford. He was capped twice by England at under-23 level. It was thought that Tommy B ...

in 1966 to bring Graham to

Highbury Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor house was sit ...

. He made his debut on 1 October 1966 at home to

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

, and although the result was a 4–2 defeat he immediately became a regular in the Arsenal side. He was Arsenal's top scorer in both 1966–67 and 1967–68, having started out as a centre forward for the club, but later moved back into midfield as an

inside forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

with John Radford moving from the wing to central striker. With Arsenal, Graham was a runner-up in both the

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Janu ...

and

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

League Cup finals, before finally winning a medal with the

1969–70 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup The 1969–70 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup was the 12th Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. The competition was won by Arsenal over two legs in the final against Anderlecht. It was the first of Arsenal's two European trophies, the other being the European Cup Winn ...

. He followed it up with being an integral part of Arsenal's

Double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

-winning side of 1970–71, and even had a claim to scoring Arsenal's equaliser in the

Final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

against

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

, although Eddie Kelly is officially credited with the goal. Winning the Double brought the attention of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

and Graham was selected for the national side for the first time against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

on 13 October 1971. He would go on to win twelve caps over the next two years for Scotland, scoring three goals, his final one coming against

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

on 30 June 1973. By then, however, Graham was no longer an Arsenal player. The arrival of Alan Ball midway through 1971–72 had made his place in the Arsenal side less assured. In total, he played 308 matches for Arsenal, scoring 77 goals.

Manchester United

Graham moved for £120,000 to Manchester United in December 1972, where he was soon reunited with Docherty. He spent two years at United and was relegated to Division Two in 1974. He was sold to Portsmouth during the 1974–75 season.

Portsmouth, Crystal Palace and California Surf

Graham saw out his career in England at

and

. He played the summer of 1978 in America for the

Managerial career

Millwall

After retiring from playing in 1978, Graham became the youth team coach at

and then from October 1980

. On 6 December 1982, he was appointed manager of

, who were then bottom of the old Third Division. Graham turned the side around in a short period of time—they avoided relegation that season on the final match of the season with a 1–0 win at Chesterfield. The following season they finished 9th and in 1984–85 they were promoted to the old

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

. After Graham left the club in 1986, they went on to win the Second Division and win promotion to the First in 1987–88.

Arsenal

Graham's achievements at Millwall attracted attention from First Division clubs, and with the resignation of

Don Howe Donald Howe (12 October 1935 – 23 December 2015) was an English football player, coach, manager and pundit. As a right back Howe featured for clubs West Bromwich Albion and Arsenal together with the England national football team in his pla ...

as Arsenal manager in March 1986, their directors first offered the job to

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Found ...

coach

, but he rejected their offer and Arsenal switched their attention to Alex Ferguson, the

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

manager, as their new manager with Graham as his assistant. However, Ferguson (then in temporary charge of the

Scotland national football team The Scotland national football team gd, Sgioba Ball-coise Nàiseanta na h-Alba sco, Scotland National Fitbaa Team represents Scotland in men's international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. It competes in the thr ...

following the death of

Jock Stein John "Jock" Stein (5 October 1922 – 10 September 1985) was a Scottish football player and manager. He was the first manager of a British side to win the European Cup, with Celtic in 1967. Stein also guided Celtic to nine successive Scottish ...

the previous September, and still in charge of Aberdeen) had decided to wait until after the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

that summer before deciding on his future. Graham himself never even applied for the Arsenal position but on 12 May 1986 his chairman at Millwall told him that Arsenal wanted to speak to him about the manager's job. After an interview with

Peter Hill-Wood Peter Denis Hill-Wood (25 February 1936 – 28 December 2018) was a British businessman and a chairman of Arsenal F.C., Arsenal Football Club. Biography Hill-Wood was born in Kensington, London, son of Denis Hill-Wood and his wife Mary Smi ...

David Dein David Barry Dein (b. 7 September 1943) is a British businessman, known for being a former co-owner and vice-chairman of Arsenal Football Club, and former vice-chairman of the Football Association. Dein was vice-chairman of Arsenal between 198 ...

and Ken Friar the Arsenal directors appointed Graham as their new manager on 14 May 1986. A month after arriving at

, Graham was himself linked with the

national team, possibly combining it with the Arsenal manager's job, but that role went to

Andy Roxburgh Andrew Roxburgh (born 5 August 1943) is a Scottish former football player and manager currently serving as an administrator. Roxburgh's entire professional playing career was spent in the Scottish Football League. After retiring as a player, h ...

instead. Arsenal had not won a trophy since the FA Cup in 1978–79, and were drifting away from the top teams in the League, having not finished in the top five during any of the previous four seasons, during which the major honours were picked up by an all-conquering

as well as the likes of Manchester United and Everton. Graham quickly discarded the likes of

Paul Mariner Paul Mariner (22 May 1953 – 9 July 2021) was an English football player and coach. A centre forward during his playing days, Mariner began his career with Chorley. He became a professional player in 1973 with Plymouth Argyle, where he scored ...

, Tony Woodcock, Stewart Robson and

Tommy Caton Thomas Stephen Caton (6 October 1962 – 30 April 1993) was an English footballer who played as a centre half for Manchester City, Arsenal, Oxford United and Charlton Athletic. Caton captained both Manchester City and Oxford United and was nam ...

, and replaced them with new signings and youth team products. He also imposed much stricter discipline than his predecessors, both in the dressing room and on the pitch. Arsenal's form immediately improved, so much so that the club were top of the League at Christmas 1986, the club's centenary, for the first time in a decade. The key players in the upturn were young defender

Tony Adams Tony Alexander Adams (born 10 October 1966) is an English former football manager and player. Adams played for Arsenal and England, captaining both teams. He spent his entire playing career of 19 years as a centre back at Arsenal, making 672 t ...

and high-scoring winger Martin Hayes. Arsenal finished fourth in Graham's first season in charge, and they went on to win the 1987 League Cup, beating Liverpool 2–1. While Arsenal lost the League Cup final the following year (a shock 3–2 defeat to

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

), they remained consistent in the league. Graham's side featured tight defensive discipline, embodied by his young captain Tony Adams, who along with

Lee Dixon Lee Michael Dixon (born 17 March 1964) is an English retired professional footballer and pundit who played as a right-back for Arsenal. Dixon was also capped 22 times for England. A childhood Manchester City fan, Dixon began his footballing ...

Steve Bould Stephen Andrew Bould (born 16 November 1962) is an English football coach and former professional footballer. He is currently the head coach of Lommel SK. As a player, he was a defender from 1980 until 2000. Bould began his football career wi ...

and

Nigel Winterburn Nigel Winterburn (born 11 December 1963) is an English former professional footballer, coach and current television personality for BT Sport. He played primarily as a left back from 1981 to 2003. He is best known for his role alongside the li ...

, would form the basis of the club's defence for over a decade. However, contrary to popular belief, during this time Arsenal were not a purely defensive side; Graham also built up an impressive midfield containing

David Rocastle David Carlyle Rocastle (2 May 1967 – 31 March 2001) was an English professional footballer who played as a midfielder in the roles of a playmaker and a winger. He spent the majority of his career at Arsenal where he was nicknamed "Rocky". Ro ...

, Michael Thomas and

Paul Merson Paul Charles Merson (born 20 March 1968) is an English former professional footballer, manager, commentator and sports television pundit for Sky Sports. Originally a forward, Merson found success as an attacking midfielder and playmaker later ...

, and striker Alan Smith, whose prolific goal-scoring regularly brought him more than 20 goals per season. At the end of Graham's third season ( 1988–89), the club won their first League title since 1971 (when Graham had been an Arsenal player), in highly dramatic fashion, in the final game of the season against holders and league leaders Liverpool at

Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 189 ...

. Arsenal needed to win by two goals to take the title; Alan Smith scored early in the second half to make it 1–0, but as time ticked by Arsenal struggled to get a second, and with the 90 minutes elapsed on the clock, they still needed another goal. With only seconds to go, a Smith flick-on found Michael Thomas surging through the Liverpool defence; the young midfielder calmly lifted the ball over

Bruce Grobbelaar Bruce David Grobbelaar (born 6 October 1957) is a Zimbabwean former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper, most prominently for English team Liverpool between 1981 and 1994, and for the Zimbabwean national team. He is remembered fo ...

and into the net, and Arsenal were League Champions. However, there was no chance to enter the European Cup just yet for Graham's team, as the ban on English clubs in European competitions (which was imposed by

UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...

in 1985 following the

Heysel disaster The Heysel Stadium disaster ( it, Strage dell'Heysel ; german: link=no, Katastrophe von Heysel ; french: Drame du Heysel ; nl, Heizeldrama ) was a crowd disaster that occurred on 29 May 1985 when mostly Juventus fans escaping from a breach by L ...

) continued for another season. After finishing fourth in 1989–90, Graham signed goalkeeper

David Seaman David Andrew Seaman (born 19 September 1963) is an English former footballer who played as a goalkeeper. In a career lasting from 1981 to 2004, he is best known for his time playing for Arsenal. He won 75 caps for England, and is the country's ...

and Swedish winger Anders Limpar in the close season; both players proved vital as Arsenal won a second title in

1990–91 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...

and reached the FA Cup semi-finals, losing to arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur. They lost just one league game all season - their 24th match of the league campaign against

on 2 February. Arsenal finished ahead of runners-up Liverpool in the race for the league title that season; in February 1991 the Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish had suddenly announced his resignation as manager, and Graham's name was among those mentioned by the media as a possible successor to Dalglish. However, Graham was quick to rule himself out of the running, and the job instead went to another Scot,

Graeme Souness Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit. A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...

. In the autumn of 1991, Graham went on to sign a striker who would break the club's all-time top scoring records,

Ian Wright Ian Edward Wright (born 3 November 1963) is an English television and radio personality and former professional footballer. He works as a pundit for BBC Sport and ITV Sport. Wright enjoyed success with London clubs Crystal Palace and Arsenal ...

from

, and led the club into their first entry in the European Cup for twenty years. However, the continental adventure was short-lived: Arsenal were knocked out by

S.L. Benfica Sport Lisboa e Benfica (), commonly known as Benfica, is a professional football club based in Lisbon, Portugal, that competes in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portuguese football. Founded on 28 February 1904 as ''Sport Lisboa'', Be ...

in the second round and failed to make the lucrative final stages. 1991–92 brought more disappointment when the ''Gunners'' were knocked out of the

in the third round by lowly

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...

, though Arsenal did reasonably well in the league, finishing fourth. After this season, Graham changed his tactics; he became more defensive and turned out far less attack-minded sides, which depended mainly on goals from Wright rather than the whole team. Between 1986–87 and 1991–92, Arsenal averaged 66 League goals a season (scoring 81 in 1991–92), but between

1992–93 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...

and 1994–95 only averaged 48; this included just 40 in 1992–93, when the club finished 10th in the inaugural season of the FA Premier League, scoring fewer than any other team in the division. Graham's Arsenal became cup specialists, and in 1992–93 they became the first side to win the FA Cup and League Cup double, both times beating

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

, 2–1 in the League Cup Final and 2–1 in the

FA Cup Final The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the most attended domestic football events in the world, with an official atten ...

replay. The next season they continued in the same vein, winning the

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...

, their second European trophy; in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

Arsenal beat favourites and holders

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...

1–0 with a tight defensive performance and Alan Smith's 21st-minute goal from a left foot volley. The 1994 Cup Winners' Cup proved to be Graham's last trophy at the club. It was on 21 February 1995 that Graham, who had led Arsenal to six trophies in eight seasons, lost his job after a Premier League inquiry found he had accepted an illegal £425,000 payment from Norwegian agent

Rune Hauge Rune Hauge (born 23 April 1954) is a Norwegian football agent. Hauge represented John Jensen and Pål Lydersen during their transfers to Arsenal in the early 1990s. This would lead to Arsenal manager George Graham becoming embroiled in allegatio ...

following Arsenal's 1992 acquisition of

John Jensen John Jensen (born 3 May 1965), nicknamed Faxe (), is a Danish football manager and former player. A former midfielder, his playing career lasted almost two entire decades, including a stint with Arsenal in England and three stints with Brøndb ...

and

Pål Lydersen Pål Lydersen (born 10 September 1965) is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a left-back. Lydersen played for IK Start, until he was signed by English club Arsenal in November 1991. However, he was unable to oust first- ...

, two of Hauge's clients. Graham was eventually banned for a year by the Football Association for his involvement in the scandal, after he admitted he had received an "unsolicited gift" from Hauge. At the time, Arsenal were struggling a little in the league, had lost a League Cup quarter final to Liverpool, been dumped out of the

after a third round replay by Millwall, and (as Cup Winners' Cup holders) had also lost the Super Cup to

AC Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seaso ...

. But of course all that had no bearing on Graham’s sacking, which was more down to brown envelopes of money, as the word "bung" embedded itself in the football lexicon. His departure from Arsenal marked the closing of a chapter in which the Gunners had made a name for themselves as a team of spoilers, admired for their stolid adherence to a compact strategy. Within 18 months, the club had appointed Arsène Wenger, ushering in a new age of football.

Leeds United

After serving his ban, Graham's return to football management came with

in September 1996. After the fifth game of the season he replaced the long serving

Howard Wilkinson Howard Wilkinson (born 13 November 1943) is an English former footballer and manager. Despite having a low-profile playing career, Wilkinson embarked on a successful managerial career. He won the First Division championship in 1992 with Leeds ...

. Graham was swiftly appointed but found himself unable to make an immediate impact, leading Leeds to five losses from his first six in the league and another defeat to Aston Villa in the League Cup. Going into November, Leeds hovered just above the relegation zone and no side in the division had conceded more goals. Graham’s miserable start to the job was compounded with a 3–0 defeat away to Arsenal, one of Arsène Wenger’s first games in charge. But soon enough, the Scottish coach’s methods started to bear fruit in a brutally efficient fashion. By the turn of the year, Leeds were unmistakably a George Graham team – risk-averse to the point of parody, yet unarguably solid as a rock. Before Christmas, they went a club-record five games without conceding, with goalless draws in successive outings against

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

, Tottenham and Everton. Packing the defence with as many bodies as possible, with

Lucas Radebe Lucas Valeriu Ntuba Radebe OIS (born 12 April 1969) is a South African former professional footballer who played as a centre back. He began playing in South Africa with Kaizer Chiefs, before transferring to Leeds United, where he played 256 ...

becoming a top-class operator and

Nigel Martyn Antony Nigel Martyn (born 11 August 1966) is an English football coach and former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He notably played in the Premier League for Crystal Palace, Leeds United and Everton, having initially playe ...

offering a strong argument to be England's No. 1. Leeds had become a defensive powerhouse. It was The Graham Way: at least eight of Leeds' 11 men were focused first and foremost on nullifying the opposition. It invariably worked. They ended the season with 20 clean sheets – a club record for a 38-game season that’s unlikely to be broken. In the end, Leeds scored just 28 goals. Not only did they stay up, but they somehow finished 11th. Where Leeds scored 28 goals in the 1996–97 season, they notched 57 in the 1997–98 season. That one season would prove useful in laying solid organisational foundations for the years to come.

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink Jerrel Floyd "Jimmy" Hasselbaink ( ; born 27 March 1972) is a Dutch professional football manager and former player who was most recently the manager of League One club Burton Albion. Born in Suriname, he and his family would later move to t ...

was signed in the summer of 1997, scoring 16 Premier League goals, and 22 in all competitions, as Leeds finished 5th during Graham’s one full season in charge, while the club continued their ascent under his former assistant and successor

David O'Leary David Anthony O'Leary (born 2 May 1958) is a football manager and former player. His managerial career began at Leeds United, subsequently managing Aston Villa. He most recently worked as the manager of Al-Ahli Dubai. The majority of his 20-yea ...

. Graham left Leeds in acrimonious circumstances, returning to London to take over at Tottenham on 1st October 1998. The move came at Leeds' hotel on the island of Madeira following Leeds UEFA Cup first round penalty shootout victory over Portuguese League side Maritimo 29 September 1998. Spurs'

Alan Sugar Alan Michael Sugar, Baron Sugar (born 24 March 1947) is a British business magnate, media personality, author, politician and political adviser. In 1968, he started what would later become his largest business venture, consumer electronics com ...

telephoned Leeds chairman

Peter Ridsdale Peter Ridsdale (born 11 March 1952) is an English businessman and advisor to the owner at Preston North End. He was until December 2011 the Chairman of Football Operations at Plymouth Argyle. Ridsdale was previously the chairman of Leeds United ...

, who admitted that after a brief telephone conversation a deal was done, with compensation agreed which would allow Graham to fulfil his wish of returning to London. Graham made no secret of his desire to head back to the capital following Leeds' 3–3 draw with Tottenham in North London on 26 September 1998. He cited family and personal reasons.

Tottenham Hotspur

Just five months after taking charge of

, he guided the club to victory over

in the 1999 League Cup Final, and with it a place in the

1999–2000 UEFA Cup The 1999–2000 UEFA Cup season was the 29th edition of the UEFA Cup competition. The final took place at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen and was won by Galatasaray, who defeated Arsenal in the final. The game was scoreless through the first nin ...

. Despite guiding the club to its first trophy in eight

seasons A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...

, Graham could not achieve a finish higher than tenth in the Premier League. Tottenham reached the last four of the

2000–01 FA Cup The 2000–01 FA Cup (known as The FA Cup sponsored by AXA for sponsorship reasons) was the 120th season of the world's oldest knockout football competition, the FA Cup. The competition was won by Liverpool, who came from 1–0 behind against A ...

with a 3–2 victory over West Ham United 11 March 2001 and Graham was looking forward to pitting his wits against his former club Arsenal in the semi-finals. He was sacked on 16 March 2001, soon after the club had been purchased by

ENIC Ente Nazionale Industrie Cinematografiche (ENIC) was an Italian film production and distribution entity that operated between 1935 and 1956. It was formed in 1935, taking over the former organisation of Stefano Pittaluga and his Cines company. ...

, for alleged breach of contract. The club stated that Graham had been issued "several written warnings prior to his sacking for giving out what was deemed by the club as being private information" before, earlier that week, apparently informing the media he had "a limited budget" for new players and expressing his disappointment with it. This led to his being summoned to a meeting with Spurs executive vice-chairman David Buchler, after which he was dismissed. Buchler subsequently questioned whether Graham had the interests of the club at heart and described his conduct in the meeting as "aggressive and defiant". Graham's legal representatives issued a statement expressing he was "shocked and upset to have been sacked and could not believe such a flimsy excuse was given". It went on to say that Graham "believes ENIC always intended to sack him."

Since 2001

Graham has been out of management ever since, concentrating on his career as a football pundit for

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...

. However, he was linked with several managerial vacancies after leaving Tottenham. In October 2001, following the dismissal of

Peter Taylor Peter Taylor may refer to: Arts * Peter Taylor (writer) (1917–1994), American author, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction * Peter Taylor (film editor) (1922–1997), English film editor, winner of an Academy Award for Film Editing Politi ...

, he was linked with that vacancy, but it was filled by

Dave Bassett David Thomas Bassett (born 4 September 1944 in Stanmore) is an English football manager and a former player. During his career he has managed Wimbledon, Watford, Sheffield United, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Barnsley, Leicester City a ...

instead. The following season, with

Glenn Roeder Glenn Victor Roeder (13 December 1955 – 28 February 2021) was an English professional football player and manager. As a player, Roeder played as a defender for Arsenal, Leyton Orient, Queens Park Rangers, Notts County, Newcastle United, Watfo ...

under fire at the helm of a

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

side heading for Premier League relegation, Graham's name was mentioned as a possible replacement, but Roeder actually lasted until the opening weeks of the 2003–04 season and this time there was little mention of Graham's name in the hunt for a successor, which ended with the appointment of Alan Pardew. In the 2003 close season, the resignation of

Graham Taylor Graham Taylor (15 September 1944 – 12 January 2017) was an English football player, manager, pundit and chairman of Watford Football Club. He was the manager of the England national football team from 1990 to 1993, and also managed Lincoln C ...

at Aston Villa saw Graham's name mentioned by the media as a possible successor, but again nothing came of it, with this vacancy being filled by

, who had played under Graham at Arsenal and worked as his assistant at Leeds. He and O'Leary had both been mentioned as candidates for the job at Sunderland twice during the 2002–03 season following the departure of

Peter Reid Peter Reid (born 20 June 1956) is an English football manager, pundit and former player. A defensive midfielder in his playing days, Reid enjoyed a long and successful career. He built his reputation as one of England's brightest midfield tale ...

in October and

in March.

Personal life

On 16 September 1967, Graham married model Marie Zia at

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it me ...

acted as his

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony and performs the first speech at the wedding. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be ...

and the two players took to the field the same afternoon for opposing teams in a

North London derby The North London derby is the meeting of the association football clubs Arsenal F.C. and Tottenham Hotspur F.C., both of which are based in North London, England. Fans of both clubs consider the other to be their main rivals, and the derby is co ...

– the groom's team won 4–0. The couple had two children, Daniel and Nicole, but the marriage ended in 1988 when Marie had a relationship with dry cleaning boss Roger Bliss. Graham married divorcee Susan Schmidt on 13 December 1998 in a lavish wedding held in

Marlow, Buckinghamshire Marlow (; historically Great Marlow or Chipping Marlow) is a town and civil parish within the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England. It is located on the River Thames, south-southwest of High Wycombe, west-northwest of Maidenhead and ...

and the two set up their marital home in Hampstead, London. Graham revealed in 2009 that he suffers from arthritis. "I love my golf but because of my arthritis, I've not played much in the last two years, if any. When I was a player, when I had a lot of time on my hands, I got down to an eight handicap. But when I was manager, I went back to 12. I've just taken up tennis and have to say I'm not very good."

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Player

Chelsea * Football League Cup: 1964–65 Arsenal * Football League First Division: 1970–71 *

: 1970–71 * Inter-Cities Fairs Cup: 1969–70

Manager

Millwall *

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

: 1982–83 *

Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 and again from 1958 until 1992. When the FA Premier League was formed, the division become the fourth tier level. In 2004, following th ...

promotion: 1984–85 Arsenal *Football League First Division: 1988–89,

*FA Cup:

*Football League Cup: 1986–87,

* FA Charity Shield:

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

(shared) * Football League Centenary Trophy: 1988 *

: 1993–94 Tottenham Hotspur *Football League Cup: 1998–99 Individual *

Premier League Manager of the Month The Premier League Manager of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Premier League manager each month of the season. The winner is chosen by a combination of an online public vote, which contributes to ...

: November 1997

Inductions

Scottish Football Hall of Fame The Scottish Football Hall of Fame is located at the Scottish Football Museum. Nominations are made each year by fans and a committee selects the inductees. The first inductions to the Hall of Fame were in November 2004 in a ceremony at Hampden Pa ...

: 2015

References

External links

Full Managerial Stats for Leeds United from WAFLL
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, George 1944 births Living people Scottish footballers Scotland international footballers English Football League players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Aston Villa F.C. players Chelsea F.C. players Arsenal F.C. players Manchester United F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Crystal Palace F.C. players California Surf players Scottish football managers Premier League managers English Football League managers Millwall F.C. managers Arsenal F.C. managers Leeds United F.C. managers Tottenham Hotspur F.C. managers Footballers from North Lanarkshire Scotland under-23 international footballers Scottish Football Hall of Fame inductees Association football midfielders Association football forwards Scottish expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate soccer players in the United States Scottish expatriate footballers Association football coaches FA Cup Final players

Early life

Playing career

Aston Villa

Chelsea

Arsenal

Manchester United

Portsmouth, Crystal Palace and California Surf

Managerial career

Millwall

Arsenal

Leeds United

Tottenham Hotspur

Since 2001

Personal life

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Player

Manager

Inductions

See also

References

External links