Eddie McCreadie served Chelsea and Scotland with distinction.placeholder image
Eddie McCreadie served Chelsea and Scotland with distinction. | Getty Images
Stamford Bridge great passes away at age of 85
Former Scotland internationalist Eddie McCreadie has died at the age of 85.
McCreadie’s passing was announced by Chelsea on Tuesday afternoon, where he played 410 games for the Stamford Bridge outfit and then went on to manage them in the 1970s.
An attack-minded left-back, Glasgow-born McCreadie was capped 23 times for Scotland and was part of the national team that famously defeated then world champions England 3-2 at Wembley in 1967.
Eddie McCreadie served Chelsea and Scotland with distinction.placeholder image
Eddie McCreadie served Chelsea and Scotland with distinction. | Getty Images
It was with Chelsea that he made his name and is one of a select few who has played and managed the London side. He moved to the Blues in 1962 after starting his playing career north of the border with Drumchapel, Clydebank Juniors and East Stirlingshire, signed by fellow Scot Tommy Docherty for a £5,000 fee.
McCreadie quickly established himself in the Chelsea starting XI that included the likes of Peter Osgood and Charlie Cooke. He netted five times for the club - the most memorable being the winner in 1965 League Cup final against Leicester City when he scored past goalkeeper Gordon Banks after an 80-yard run. He also won the FA Cup with Chelsea in 1970 in a bad-tempered clash with Leeds United.
McCreadie retired in 1973 and joined the coaching staff at Chelsea. Two years later he was handed the reins as manager and guided the club back to the top flight in 1977 with Ray Wilkins in his team. He left his role not long after and went to the North American Soccer League, where he took charge of Memphis Rogues and Cleveland Force between 1978 and 1982.
What McCreadie said about Chelsea
“I know you have to ask about that,” he said. “Everyone has that wrong. It was nothing to do with a car. I am not going into details. I left because I resigned. It is assumed that I was not happy at the time, and no, I was not happy at the time. It was a disagreement between myself and the directors at the club, but these things happen. Am I mad at anyone? Of course not, but it was a decision I felt I had to make.”
“I love Chelsea, Alan. Please put that in. It is the greatest club in the world and every day I was there they treated me with the highest respect, took care of me, and as manager as well. We just had a disagreement that time. Things happen. There was a disagreement and I left because I felt it was the right thing to do. It was a difficult time for me, as it was for them.”
Eddie McCreadie also led Chelsea to success as a manager.placeholder image
Eddie McCreadie also led Chelsea to success as a manager. | Getty Images
Chelsea paid a warm tribute to McCreadie on their website. “McCreadie’s aggressive, rampaging approach made him a crowd favourite,” the English Premier League club stated. “Without ever quite acquiring the reputation of ‘Chopper’ Harris alongside him, McCreadie could be tough in the tackle and was great in the air. Nicknamed Clarence by team-mates (after a visually challenged lion in popular TV programme of the time, Daktari). Eddie, the joke went, was never quite certain what he was kicking on the pitch. That aside, his sliding interventions, often rescuing situations to help out fellow defenders, were a trademark.”
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Paying tribute to the youthful side that he lead to success in the 1976/77 season, Chelsea added: “We went through the whole league season unbeaten at home and the image of McCreadie, clad in a sheepskin coat and wearing 1970s-style sunglasses while appealing for exuberant, celebrating fans to leave the pitch during the promotion run-in, is an iconic Chelsea image of the age.”
The signed off with: “All at Chelsea Football Club send our deepest condolences to Eddie’s wife Linda and his other family and his friends.”