For 15 days, Manchester United legend George Best was actually called Ronald Samuel.
Many of those lucky enough to have witnessed George Best’s genius with the ball at his feet will tell you that the Belfast-born phenomenon was the greatest footballer of all time.
“Maradona good, Pele better, George Best” is a famous phrase associated with the Belfast boy. It represents a popular opinion among some football fans from a different era, at a time before Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi dominated European football.
Best entertained United fans in the 1960s and early 1970s with his skills, playing nearly 500 games for the club. He lifted two league titles during that time, as well as the European Cup – just 10 years after the Munich Air Disaster.
He arrived in 1961 as a 15-year-old who suffered from homesickness before eventually settling into his new surroundings in Manchester.
The former Northern Ireland international left Old Trafford under a grey cloud at the age of 27, but after creating a decade worth of memories at United, he is forever remembered as one of the greatest players to wear the red shirt.
Best is still celebrated to this day as a member of United’s holy Trinity, along with fellow legends from the 1968 European Cup-winning team, Sir Bobby Charlton and Denis Law.
Belfast’s most famous footballing son passed away, aged 59, on November 25, 2005.
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George Best was called Ronald Samuel for 15 days
Did you know that Best had a different birth name?
It was revealed by the Belfast Telegraph in May 2015 that the United legend was actually called Ronald Samuel for the first 15 days of his life.
He would become George Best after being baptised on June 6, 1946.
Best’s former agent Phil Hughes went on record to explain that his parents decided to change the name because they thought their original choice was “too much of a mouthful”.
Hughes learned about Best’s name following a conversation with George’s father, Dickie.
“I was with George when his father showed him his birth certificate,” Hughes added.
“Dickie told him that they were originally going to call him Ronald Samuel but, after a few days, he and George’s mother came to the conclusion that it was too much of a mouthful so they decided to call him after a family member on his mother’s side instead.”
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Best hailed by Franz Beckenbauer
One of the greatest centre-backs in football history, Franz Beckenbauer, was a big fan of Best.
Beckenbauer will be remembered as an assured presence in the heart of his country’s defence, guiding West Germany to a European Championship in 1972, before reaching the World Cup final two years later.
The German heaped praise on Best and said he was the finest player to never have the honour of representing his country in a major international final.
“George Best was one of the most talented players of all time and probably the best footballer who never made it to a major world final,” Beckenbauer was famously quoted.