Tribute fit for a King

A stunning fan-led tribute to the legendary Ledley King has today been completed in the heart of Tottenham.

Fans attending this week’s matches against Chelsea and Arsenal can see the 25-foot square mural, created with paint supplied by our official partners Dulux, at the Tottenham Community Sports Centre off the High Road opposite the stadium.

The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust (THST) teamed up with MurWalls - one of the UK’s leading creators of street art - to produce the mural that pays homage to Ledley’s phenomenal contribution both to the Club and its surrounding community.

One of the greatest ever defenders to pull on the famous white jersey, Ledley joined us as a schoolboy, going on to make 323 First Team appearances between 1999-2012, captaining the Club to League Cup honours in 2008.

Following his retirement through injury, Ledley has continued to represent the Club as an Ambassador, helping inspire achievement in young people within our community and engage with fans both at home and overseas.

On seeing the completed mural for the first time, Ledley said: “It is a true honour for me to have a tribute like this in the heart of a community that means so much to me. I have always shared an incredible relationship with the Club and its fans, who have supported me through thick and thin, and would like to thank the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust and MurWalls for their fantastic work on the mural. To know that I am thought of in this way by our fans makes me incredibly proud and shows why this Club - my one and only Club - is so special.”

Rob White, Board Member of THST who has led on the mural project, said: “It’s absolutely fantastic that, with so much positive input from many sources, this part of the project has now been delivered. My long-term aim is that this should be just the start, and we can now look to establish a series of murals in the area which will help to share the proud history, and heritage, of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.”

Marc Silver, Founder and CEO of MurWalls, said: “I am very proud for MurWalls to be producing this artistic tribute to a contemporary football legend. What a player Ledley was, and now having met him personally, I am even more delighted to pay homage for a genuinely top guy. He deserves all the praise. Together with Rob White, we have worked tirelessly for a long time to make this come to life- but it was worth every bit of effort.”

Ledley is respected by all those he shared a dressing room with - not least three special contributors to the mural...

Michael Dawson - Ledley’s most regular centre-back partner during his time at the Club - Peter Crouch and Alton Thelwell, who both progressed through our Academy alongside him, all helped paint sections of the mural over the past week.

‘Daws’, now a fellow Club Ambassador, said: “I will always remember watching my first game after joining the Club from Nottingham Forest in 2005 - we were at home to Portsmouth and I sat there watching Ledley playing, thinking ‘how am I going to look playing alongside this guy!?’ He was an absolute Rolls Royce of a defender. I’ve said many times that I don’t believe I would have had the Spurs career I had were it not for Ledley. Both on and off the pitch, he was such a calming influence who gave reassurance to everyone around him, leading by example as a captain. The mural is incredible – since retiring, we all know what a big part Ledley has played in this community and how appreciated he is. This tribute is more than deserved.”

‘Crouchy’, who having left the Club 19 later returned to be captained by Ledley following spells at QPR, Portsmouth, Aston Villa, Southampton and Liverpool, said: “In our Academy group, Ledley was by far the best player - his level of skill and technique as a centre-half was very rare in those days. He’s one of my best friends in the game - to have grown up in the youth team together and then years later experience some famous occasions together in the First Team, with our families watching on, is something very special to me. Everyone respected him - not just at Spurs but around England squads as well - and it makes me so proud to see how Ledley has become a Club legend who now has a mural across the road from the stadium in his honour.”

Alton, who broke into the First Team under George Graham around the same time as Ledley, said: “We all know Ledley as a laid-back guy - but there is so much depth to him. Me and him will talk for hours about a range of topics, and that knowledge always translated to how he played on the pitch. I will never forget my debut against Liverpool. The team weren’t doing so well at the time and Ledley and I were sniffing around the First Team. In the Friday training session, we realised we may have a chance of playing and then both ended up starting the match, which we went on to win in front of the live TV cameras. It was a dream come true and being able to do that alongside a true friend in Ledley is a moment that will never leave me.”