140 years of Spurs

Bill Nicholson

'Mr Tottenham' - player, manager, chief scout, Club President -
1938-2004

Bill Nicholson’s contribution to the history of Tottenham Hotspur may never be surpassed.

Arriving as a teenage member of the groundstaff in 1936, he served as player, coach, assistant manager and manager over the next 38 years. Of the 17 major honours won in the Club's history, Bill was involved in nine - one as a player and eight as manager. Leaving his role as manager in 1974, he returned in 1976 to add a further 21 years to his tally, this time working behind the scenes to help unearth future talent for the Club. ‘Mr Tottenham Hotspur’ continued to live in the same modest house a goal-kick away from White Hart Lane until 2003 and attended most home games up to the early months of 2004. He sadly passed away in October, 2004.

Gone, but never forgotten.

Born at Scarborough on January 26, 1919, Bill first came down to Spurs for a trial in 1936, eventually signing professional forms in August, 1938. During the Second World Cup, Bill served the Durham Light Infantry, rising to the rank of sergeant. By 1948, he was a regular, and missed just four games in Arthur Rowe's famous 'push and run' back to back titles - the Second Division title in 1949/50 followed by our first First Division championship in 1950/51. He went on to play 314 times for us, earning one England cap, scoring within 30 seconds against Portugal in May, 1951.

Bill's lasting legacy would come as manager. Taking over from Jimmy Anderson in 1958 - and winning his first game 10-4 against Everton - Bill built a team seen by many as one of the best ever in British football. Led by Danny Blanchflower, with the heart of Dave Mackay, skill of John White and goals from all angles from the likes of Cliff Jones, Bobby Smith, Les Allen and Terry Medwin, we won our first 11 matches of 1960/61 - still a record - on the way to clinching the 'double' of First Division and FA Cup, the first team to do so in the 20th century. We retained the FA Cup in 1962, created more history in 1963 by becoming the first team to win a European trophy and more trophies followed as Bill put together another great team going into the 1970s - the FA Cup in 1967, the first-ever UEFA Cup in 1972 with League Cups either side in 1971 and 1973.

On 29 August, 1974 Bill announced his retirement as manager. He returned to serve us as a consultant and chief scout in July, 1976. His connection with our scouting department continued until his retirement in July, 1997. During July, 1991 he was appointed Club President and was the first inductee into the Tottenham Hotspur Hall of Fame in March, 2004. Bill Nicholson passed away at a Potters Bar Hospital on 23 October, 2004, aged 85.

Keith Burkinshaw

Manager, 1976-1984

Born at Higham, Barnsley on 23 June, 1935, Keith Burkinshaw played for Liverpool, Workington and Scunthorpe United before joining Newcastle United's coaching staff in 1968. Keith arrived at Tottenham during June, 1975 as first team coach, working alongside manager Terry Neill and assistant manager Wilf Dixon. A year later, he took over as manager. His first season saw us relegated from the old First Division but we bounced back at the first attempt, notching our best ever win in Division Two - 9-0 against Bristol Rovers - a result that proved crucial in edging out Brighton for the third promotion place.

The dual signing of Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa soon after the 1978 World Cup gave the club a new lease of life. The Centenary FA Cup Final was famously won in 1981 and 12 months later, Keith became the first manager to lead his side to two major cup finals at Wembley in the same season - the League Cup and FA Cup. Another record was created by reaching the League Cup Final without conceding a goal. Our only reward for a season where we went so close on four fronts was retaining the FA Cup in May, 1982. A new club record of 18 FA Cup matches undefeated was created between January, 1981 and January, 1983. On 2 April, 1984 Keith announced his resignation with effect from 31 May. And he would go out in style - his final match in charge saw the UEFA Cup Final won at White Hart Lane in a dramatic penalty shoot-out against Anderlecht, after the two-legged final was level at 2-2.

Glenn Hoddle

The maestro - player 1975-1987; manager - 2001-2003

One of the most gifted players of his generation, voted many times over the years as our greatest-ever player, Glenn Hoddle lit up Spurs for 12 years with his sublime skills, unequalled passing ability, eye for a goal and that knack of being able to turn a game with a moment of magic. Fans of a certain vintage will be able to reel off any number of goals - volleys against Forest and United, that chip at Watford, a 35-yard humdinger into the top corner at the Kop end at Anfield or his final goal at the Lane in 1987, a run from inside his own half against Oxford, to name but a few.

Born in Hayes, Middlesex, Glenn signed as an apprentice on the recommendation of another great, Martin Chivers, in 1974. He signed as a professional in 1975, made his debut aged 17 last that year and marked his first start in the Football League with what would be a trademark long-range shot against Peter Shilton, no less, at Stoke in February 1976. Glenn would become the fulcrum in midfield of the great Spurs team of the early 1980s, led by Steve Perryman, under the management of Keith Burkinshaw, that won the FA Cup in 1981, retained it in 1982 - Glenn scored the winner in the replay against QPR - and then the UEFA Cup in 1984, although injury ruled him out of the European final. He also appeared in the 1987 FA Cup and 1982 League Cup Finals. He moved on to AS Monaco in 1987 and won the French title in 1987/88.

Glenn was capped 53 times by England, scoring on his debut against Bulgaria in 1979. He played at the 1982 and 1986 World Cups. On his return from France, Glenn moved into management, initially player-manager at Swindon Town in 1991, then Chelsea in 1993 and then the top job at England in 1996, taking the Three Lions to the 1998 World Cup, where they lost out on penalties to Argentina. After leaving the England job in 1999, Glenn was back in management at Southampton in 2000 before returning 'home' to manage Spurs 2001-2003. He later had a short spell at Wolves in 2006 before moving into a media career as a pundit for the likes of ITV and BT Sport. Now 64, Glenn suffered a cardiac arrest in October, 2018, but recovered to take his place as part of the BT Sport presenting team for the Champions League semi-final win at Ajax in May, 2019, and the the final in June, 2019. He told us that May: "It might have been something I’d missed. To think of that... it hit me in the studio (at Ajax). In the cold light of day, I thought ‘this was worth staying alive for!’"

Ledley King

The King - 1999-2012

One of the greatest-ever defenders to pull on the famous white jersey, Ledley led us for seven years with composure, tenacity and heart. He knew what it meant to play for Spurs. It's his Club, his one and only Club. Coming through the ranks of our youth system, the centre-back’s talent shone. His ability to read the game was remarkable at such a young age, his focus intense, developing his understanding and instinctive positioning and timing. It’s been said many times, but barring injuries, Ledley may well have been one of England’s all-time great defenders. But in the end, a persistent knee problem forced him to retire in 2012 at the age of just 31.

Nevertheless, he enjoyed some memorable times, not least lifting the League Cup at Wembley in 2008 and playing his part in our famous 1-0 win at City in May, 2010, to clinch Champions League football for the first time for the 2010/11 season. Ledley was handed his debut at Liverpool in May, 1999, but only a handful of opportunities arrived over the next two years. Indeed, it wasn’t until the final day of the 1999/2000 season that he was given the chance to make his bow in front of the Spurs faithful at the Lane. Sunderland were visiting that day and, armed with Golden Boot winner Kevin Phillips and 6ft 4in strike partner Niall Quinn, they were in the hunt for a European place. That did not faze a then 20-year-old Ledley, however, as he demonstrated maturity beyond his years - we ran out 3-1 winners. It took only took four more appearances for us to see his first goal in a Spurs shirt – a strike which, until recently, was the fastest goal ever scored in the Premier League’s history, with just 9.82 seconds on the clock at Bradford City.

Now a regular, the arrival of Martin Jol in 2004 saw Ledley begin to reach the peak of his potential. Partnered by Noureddine Naybet and then Michael Dawson, we started to build the foundations of a team that would move up the table and begin to challenge for the Champions League places. Ledley was named captain in 2005 - a role he proudly held until his retirement - and lifted a trophy with Robbie Keane at Wembley after our League Cup triumph of 2008. After leading us into the Champions League, he was selected for England’s World Cup squad in 2010, but injury struck in South Africa and those issues were beginning to take their toll. He made only nine appearances in 2010/11 and after struggling towards the end of the 2011/12 campaign, decided to call it a day. Still hugely popular and adored by fans - Ledley’s name rings out on 26 minutes of every game, marking his shirt number - he has continued his life-long association with Spurs in his role of Club Ambassador and also spent the 2020/21 season on our first team staff.