There are a lot of attributes that make a top footballer. Naturally, your technical ability is often paramount. If you can't control a ball, pick out a pass or find the back of the net in various ways, then you're never going to make it at the top level of the game. The same can also be said of things like desire, determination and grit, all of which can push uyou to become a better player and reach heights you otherwise may have missed out on.
But even if you have those things in abundance, question marks could still be raised depending on your stature. If you are not the same size - more specifically the same height - as your opponents, you may be deemed as being too small to make it. Of course there are exceptions, Lionel Messi being the prime one. But in English football especially, there used to be a tabboo surrounding players of a certain height.
As such, certain talents often slipped completely under the radar with some times after they looked down upon them, literally and metaphorically. And one of the most iconic British players of his generation faced that very same rejection before going on to become a legendary figure at the club that finally accepted him.
Leeds Legend Rejected For His Height
Billy Bremner for Leeds United
According to an account from the National Football Museum, Leeds United hero Billy Bremner nearly didn't make it as a footballer due to concerns over his height. Concerns he would well and truly put to be when he found his true home in Yorkshire.
A biography of his career written by the museum reads:
"At just 5′ 5″ tall, Bremner was rejected by Arsenal and Chelsea for being too short before signing for Leeds at the age of 17. The two London clubs were soon to regret the decision as the diminutive Scot helped Leeds to promotion to the top-flight in 1964."
What he may have lacked in height, he more than made up for in leadership and ability, with former Leeds manager Don Revie once telling other members of his squad that Bremner on one leg was better than most of them on two.
Revie made no bones about the importance of Bremner in his successful Leeds team, paying his leadership thge highest praise when he said: "No manager could wish for a greater leader or a greater player. If I was in the trenches at the front line, the man I would want on my right side is Billy Bremner."
Bremner's Legendary Leeds Career
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Hailing from Stirling, Bremner joined Leeds as a 17-year-old in 1959 and went on to become the heart and soul of the club during its most successful period. A fiercely competitive midfielder, Bremner played the game with unmatched fire and determination, combining tough tackling with real footballing intelligence. He covered every blade of grass, never backed down from a challenge, and led by sheer willpower.
Over his 17 years at Leeds, he racked up over 770 appearances and captained the side through a trophy-laden era. Under manager Don Revie, Bremner helped guide the club to two league titles, an FA Cup, a League Cup, and a pair of Inter-Cities Fairs Cups, as well as several agonising near-misses in Europe and domestic competitions. He embodied the grit and defiance that defined Leeds in the '60s and '70s.
On the international stage, Bremner represented Scotland 54 times and captained them at the 1974 World Cup. But his time in a Scotland shirt came to a premature end following a late-night incident on tour that saw him banned from international duty.
One of his most talked-about moments came in the 1974 Charity Shield, where he and Liverpool’s Kevin Keegan were both sent off for trading punches — a fiery clash that saw both men dramatically toss their shirts away as they left the pitch.
His status at Leeds would be cemented by an incredible honour after his tragic passing aged 55, as a statue of Bremner stands proudly outside Elland Road — a permanent tribute to one of the club's greatest ever players.