George Best, born Belfast, Northern Ireland, May 22, 1946. George Best was in all probability the finest footballer ever to be born. A hurtling flankman with exceptional talent and skills, he signed his first professional contract with Manchester United in May 1963 at the age of seventeen and from there he went on to become a vital member of one of the greatest teams ever assembled and proved to be such a footballing great that the supporters of the club sincerely believed that their idol never could be replaced.
At Manchester United, George Best would appear in a team which contained world class professionals such as Bobby Charlton, Paddy Crerand, Bill Foulkes, David Herd, Denis Law, David Sadler, and Nobby Stiles. A creative and industrious performer, Best was always prepared to play the right ball instead of just hoofing it everywhere and although he was originally a winger, the precociously talented youth ultimately developed into an incredible productive and versatile player who could easily operate up frontline or in the middle of the park if needed. While with Manchester United, the vastly celebrated crowd puller won the First Division Championship title in 1964-65 and 1966-67 respectively, and then the coveted UEFA European Cup when his side defeated twice winners Benfica in the final in May 1968. He would go on to play well over 400 matches for Manchester United and his name will always be inextricably linked to the club where he spent the majority of his professional career before he left Old Trafford in January 1974. He also collected 37 full caps for Northern Ireland between 1964 and 1967, but he never reached a major international tournament with his country.
PART ONE
George Best was the eldest of six children in a working-class Free Presbyterian family in Creragh, East Belfast. His father, Dickie, was a shipyard worker at Harland and Wolff, while his mother, Anne, worked on the production line of the Gallaher Tobacco Factory. Best, whose father used to be a member of The Orange Order, grew up supporting Irish League outfit Glentoran and wanted to play for The Glens as a boy, but he was turned down by the Protestant club because they believed that he was far too small to make the grade. He was eventually discovered by now legendary Manchester United´s Northern Ireland scout Bob Bishop, who had a very sharp eye for spotting young and emerging talent, at the age of fifteen and arrived at The Cliff Training Ground in Manchester on trial in the warm summer of 1961 along with fellow Northern Ireland native Eric McMordie. The immensely gifted youngster soon became homesick and went back to Northern Ireland after only two days, but returned and spent two years as an amateur player while working as a clerk for the Manchester Ship Canal Company and then as an electrician for a local business owned by a United supporter before he was offered his first professional contract by the club on his 17th birthday on the 22th of May 1963.
The Belfast Boy was at long last handed his much anticipated and well deserved senior debut for FA Cup holders Manchester United by long-serving boss Matt Busby in a 1-0 win against West Bromwich Albion at Old Trafford on the 14th of September 1963 and registered his first goal for the side in a 5-1 home crushing of Burnley on the 28th of December. Former Arsenal forward David Herd handed Manchester United an early 1-0 lead after eleven minutes before Graham Moore scored a second goal make it 2-0 in the 25th minute. And as the fixture wore on, Best added a third when he fired an unstoppable shot from the edge of the box past Burnley goalkeeper Adam Blacklaw and into the net with seven minutes left of the first half. Following the interval, Moore and Herd completed their braces in the 68th and 70th minutes respectively, while Andy Lochhead notched up a late consolation goal for the visitors in the 87th minute. After scoring in a 4-1 success over West Bromwich at The Hawthorns on the 18th of January 1964, Best netted in a 4-0 FA Cup Fifth Round win against Third Division Barnsley at Oakwell on the 15th of February before hitting a brace either side of the break in a 5-0 triumph against Bolton Wanderers at Old Trafford four days later. Now well established in the first team, he scored the last goal of a 3-3 FA Cup Quarter-Final draw with Second Division Sunderland at Old Trafford on Leap Day and finished the 1963-64 season having scored six goals in first team 26 appearances.
His first goal of the 1964-65 campaign arrived in a fine 3-1 victory over FA Cup winners West Ham United at Old Trafford on the 2nd of September, in what was Manchester United´s first win of the new season. John Connelly gave the hosts the upper hand as the outside forward launched a fierce shot past away goalkeeper Jim Standen and into the net after only a minute of play, but an own goal by Stiles gifted the visiting team an equaliser just four minutes later. Manchester United fought on and regained the lead with a goal from Law on 28 minutes and when Best beat Standen in the 53rd minute the game was beyond reach for the visitors. After scoring against West Ham, Best netted the opening goal in a 2-1 success against Everton at Old Trafford on the 16th of September and a fortnight later he also hit the opener in a 2-0 win over First Division leaders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge which took Manchester United up to second position, a mere two points behind the West Londoners. On the 27th of October, Best found the net in a 6-1 Inter-Cities Fair Cup First Round Second Leg victory against Swedish Champions Djurgarden of Stockholm at Old Trafford and was one of the main protagonists in Manchester United´s 2-0 triumph over Liverpool at Anfield three days after that, a result that pushed them to the top of the standings. After netting a goal in a 6-1 Inter-Cities Fair Cup Second Round First Leg win against German Bundesliga Borussia Dortmund at Westfalenstadion on the 11th of November, he was on the scoresheet in a 3-0 drubbing of local rivals Blackburn Rovers before a 50,000 crowd at Old Trafford ten days later and then registered the winner in a 1-0 triumph over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Boxing Day which ensured Manchester United remained at the very top of the League Division One table.
On the 9th of January, George Best started the new year by scoring a goal in Manchester United´s 2-1 FA Cup Third Round win over Fourth Division Chester City at Old Trafford. The Seals, who had defeated Third Division Barnsley 5-2 at Oakwell in the previous round, took a shock lead when former Preston North End and Bristol Rovers winger Jimmy Humes beat United goalkeeper Pat Dunne with a diving header in the ninth minute, but goals from Best and Liverpool born Albert Kinsey in the 56th and 59th minutes saw Manchester United emerge victorious in the end. Best got back on the scoring track as he notched an early opener in 3-2 success against Burnley at Old Trafford on the 13th of February and was also among the goal scorers in a palpitating 5-3 FA Cup Quarter-Final triumph over fellow First Division club Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux Grounds on the 10th of March. And after netting one of the goals in a 4-0 home trashing of League Cup finalists Chelsea on the 13th of March, he registered a brace either side of half-time in a 4-2 away win against bottom-of-the-table Birmingham City on the 19th of April and grabbed a goal in a 3-1 victory at home to Arsenal the following week. Manchester United had shown a remarkable consistency since Christmas and despite suffering a 2–1 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa at Villa Park on the 28th of April, they were crowned champions for the sixth time in their history on goal average ahead of Leeds. In total, Best amassed a creditable 14 goals in 59 matches in all competitions for Manchester United that campaign and his fame kept on growing.
PART TWO
Best opened his scoring account of the 1965-66 season with a late goal in a 4-2 loss against Nottingham Forest at City Ground on the 24th August and highlighted his form by hitting a double in a 6-0 European Cup Preliminary Round Second Leg victory against Finnish Champions HJK Helsinki at Old Trafford on the 6th of October. Showing plenty of aptitude for goals, he hit a single in a 2-0 win over FA Cup holders Liverpool at Old Trafford three days later and another goal in a comprehensive 5-0 victory against fellow middle-of-the-table outfit Leicester City at Filbert Street on the 13th of November. Following the initial skirmishes, Connelly gave Manchester United, who were wearing an all-white kit for the fixture, the upper hand as the pacey and tricky winger converted a slick pass from Herd on eleven minutes before the provider found the back of the net himself with a long-distance rocket a minute past the hour-mark to double the lead for the visitors. And with about a minute left of the first half, Herd recorded his second goal of the match when he headed a perfectly delivered cross from Best past home goalkeeper Gordon Banks and into the bottom left corner of the net to make it 3-0 to Manchester United. After the restart of play, Charlton hit the fourth goal of the day as he fired the ball into the net via the bar in the 70th minute of the meeting, and a mere three minutes later Best rounded off the scoring with a wonderful individual effort to seal an emphatic away win over Leicester. On the 20th of November, he found the target twice in a 3-1 success over Sheffield United at Old Trafford and repeated the feat with another brace in a close 3-2 triumph against Sunderland at Roker Park on the 11th of December. He was back on the scoresheet with a first-half goal in a business-like 3-0 victory at home to Everton on the 15th of December and played an important part in a 5-1 home route of Tottenham a mere three days later.
East Belfast’s most famous son brought his form into the new year of 1966 by netting in a 1-1 home draw with Sunderland on the 8th of January. A fortnight later, he registered a first-half brace in a 5-2 FA Cup Third Round win over Derby County at Baseball Ground and then scored a second-half goal in a 4-2 FA Cup Fifth Round victory against Wolverhampton at Molineux on the 5th of March. Even though he already had made a name for himself, his real breakthrough on the continental scene arrived in the memorable 5-1 European Cup Quarter-Final Second Leg triumph against Portuguese Primeira Liga giants Benfica at the Stadium of Lights in Lisbon four days later when he scored another brace. In front of a boisterous 75,000 strong home crowd, Best put the English First Division Champions two goals up within the first twelve minutes of the midweek fixture, while Connelly, Crerand, and Charlton all netted a goal each to bring the Old Trafford club´s tally to five. Best returned to Manchester as a hero, but unfortunately his season was shortened when he sustained a knee injury following a heavy challenge during a closely fought 1-1 FA Cup Quarter-Final draw against Preston North End at Deepdale on the 26th of March. The medical staff at Manchester United claimed it was light ligament damage, but Best was not convinced about the treatment he was getting at Old Trafford and he secretly saw Glentoran and Northern Ireland physiotherapist Bobby McGregor who successfully dealt with the injury problem. Despite his injury break, Best nevertheless recorded 17 goals in 43 appearances in all competitions for Manchester United during the 1965-66 campaign, but the club failed to win any major honours.
Manchester United, who had dispensed with the services of John Connelly and Wilfred Tranter during the summer months, began the 1966-67 season in excellent style with a 5-3 victory over West Bromwich Albion at Old Trafford on the 20th of August, with Law registering a brace and Best, Herd, and Stiles producing a goal each for the hosts. Best, whose knee was back to full strength, scored his second goal in a week as he hit a second-half consolation in a 3-1 defeat to Leeds United at Elland Road on the 27th of August and showed his worth by setting up two goals in a 3-2 win against slow starters Newcastle United at Old Trafford on the 3rd of September. An excruciating 5-1 League Cup Second Round loss to fellow Division One side Blackpool at Bloomfield Road on the 14th September was soon brushed off by a 1-0 victory over Manchester City at Old Trafford three days later, but Best had to wait until Guy Fawke´s Day for his next goal in a ruthless 3-1 win against First Division leaders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The fireworks started when Manchester United left-winger John Aston took advantage of a rare blunder by Chelsea and England international goalkeeper Peter Bonetti to put the visitors into the lead with some five minutes remaining of the first half. And eighteen minutes into the second half, Best proved his weight in gold for his team as the twenty-year-old soccer wizard unleashed a tremendous shot that left Bonetti with absolutely no chance to save. As the half moved on, John Hollins reduced the deficit for The Pensioners in the 73rd minute, but Aston restored Manchester United´s two goal advantage a mere three minutes later to complete his double. On the 30th of November, Best was on target again in a 2-1 victory over Leicester City at Filbert Street and then struck twice in a battling 2-2 draw against defending champions Liverpool at Old Trafford on the 10th of December, taking his goal tally to six goals.
Manchester United had now moved into a higher gear and following a goalless, but eventful, draw to Leeds United at Old Trafford on New Year´s Eve, the club entered January sitting top of the pile with 33 points won from 24 games, two points above second placed Liverpool and three ahead of Nottingham Forest in third spot. On the 28th of January, Manchester United beat fellow First Division side Stoke City by 2-0 at home in the third round of the FA Cup, but were knocked out in the next stage after suffering a 2-1 home defeat against Second Division Norwich City on the 18th of February. Refusing to be downhearted, Best quickly put the disappointment and frustration of the loss to The Canaries behind him and helped Manchester United to an absolutely stunning 4-0 triumph against basement dwellers Blackpool at Old Trafford the following week. Best, who was all over the pitch in every match he played, had a goal disallowed in a 1-1 draw to Arsenal at Highbury on the 3rd of March, but scored in a pulsating 2-2 draw with Fulham watched by an attendance of more than 47,000 people at Craven Cottage on Easter Monday and was on target again in a no-nonsense 3-0 triumph over West Ham United at Old Trafford on April Fool´s Day. On the 29th of April, he joined fellow forwards Aston and Law on the scoresheet in another 3-0 win, this time against relegation worried Aston Villa at Old Trafford, and seven days later he grabbed his tenth and final goal of the season in a dominant 6-1 hammering of West Ham at an overcrowded Boleyn Ground in East London, a result that clinched the Division One title for Manchester United. And not only was Best ever present in the side, he was the main attraction on the field.
PART THREE
Manchester United came agonisingly close to winning the title again the following year, losing out to their old foes Manchester City by just two points. Best had his first goal of the 1967-68 campaign in a 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough on the 16th of September and proceeded to score a brace either side of the interval in a 3-1 defeat of Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford the following week. On the 25th of October, he was among the goal scorers in a 4-0 route of Coventry City at Old Trafford and four days later he hit a consolation goal in 3-1 loss to Nottingham Forest at City Ground. On the 4th of November, he played a vital part in the winning goal in a 1-0 victory over Stoke City at Old Trafford as his shot was parried into the path of Charlton who effortlessly put the ball into the net at the first attempt, and a week later he recorded a first-half brace in a 2-1 beating of Liverpool at Anfield. Best opened the scoring as he beat Tommy Lawrence with a header from a corner by John Aston in the 18th minute and added a second goal five minutes before the break when he took advantage of a misjudgement by the goalkeeper to easily steer the ball into the net. England international Roger Hunt pulled one back for the hosts in the 83 minute, but his goal came too late and the visiting side held on for the points. With his form still intact, his goal scoring exploits continued in a 2-1 European Cup Second Round Second Leg win over Yugoslavian Champions FK Sarajevo at Old Trafford on the 29th of November as he netted the decider in the 63rd minute of a match that featured plenty of fouls committed by The Maroon-Whites. With the season approaching half-way, he hit a brace in a 2-1 victory at home to West Bromwich on the 2nd of December and recorded another two goals in a 4-0 home humiliation of Wolverhampton on Boxing Day. After beating Wolves, Manchester United were now topping the top-flight table with 33 points, three more than Liverpool and Manchester City who were second and third respectively, whereas at the other end of the standings Fulham, Sheffield United, and Coventry City were all fighting to avoid relegation.
A goal in a 3-1 win against West Ham United at home on the 6th of January was followed by a brace either side of the half-time break in a 4-2 home victory over Sheffield Wednesday a fortnight later. Then, on the last day of the month, Best was among the goal scorers in an action-packed and enthralling 2-2 FA Cup Third Round draw against holders Tottenham Hotspur in front of a bumper crowd of more than 63,000 onlookers at Old Trafford. After recently signed forward Martin Chivers had given Tottenham the upper hand in the second minute, Best soon levelled the score for Manchester United with an out-of-this-world effort a couple of minutes later. Following the interval, Charlton handed United the advantage for the first time in the match with seventeen minutes remaining, only for Chivers to equalise for Spurs in the very last minute of the third round tie. Manchester United were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Tottenham in the replay at Old Trafford four days later, but they quickly redeemed themselves as they edged out The Lilywhites by a 2-1 scoreline in a First Division fixture at White Hart Lane on the 3rd of February thanks to goals from Best and Charlton in the 18th and 88th minutes respectively. On the 17th of February, Best netted a consolation in a 2-1 loss against a well-structured Burnley team at Turf Moor and carried his form by hitting one of the goals in a 2-0 defeat of League Cup finalists Arsenal at Highbury the following week, with his goal coming in the 56th minute when he beat a string of defenders before unleashing a ferocious shot beyond the grasp of ex-Burnley and Liverpool custodian Jim Furnell and into the net. And with that victory, Manchester United increased their lead at the top of the First Division to three points over second placed Leeds United. Meanwhile, at the other end of the standings, Fulham languished at the foot of the table after suffering a 2-1 loss at the hands of West Bromwich at The Hawthorns.
The goals kept on flowing and he registered a goal in a 3-1 home defeat to fellow First Division title contenders Manchester City on the 27th of March and grabbed himself another in a 2-1 loss against Liverpool, who were also chasing the title, on home soil on the 6th of April. Cheered on by a 63,000-strong crowd, Division One leaders Manchester United opened the scoring when Best received a beautiful pass delivered by Charlton and then composedly placed the ball past the advancing Lawrence and into the goal with just two minutes played. Not losing their fighting spirit, the away team responded immediately as Ron Yeats and Hunt found the net in the ninth and seventeenth minutes respectively and the hosts never recovered from that. The result at Old Trafford meant Manchester United tumbled down to second position in the top-flight standings, whereas Liverpool retained their fourth place. As the month progressed, Best earned himself a first-half brace in a 4-0 demolition of Fulham, who were on their way to relegation, at Craven Cottage on Good Friday and got the equaliser in a 2-2 draw with Southampton at The Dell on Easter Saturday. He struck again in a 3-0 triumph at home to Fulham on Easter Monday and put in a valiant effort in the 1-0 win against Sheffield United on home ground five days later despite a strained leg muscle. On the 24th of April, he registered the winner in a 1-0 European Cup Semi-Final First Leg victory over La Liga´s Real Madrid at Old Trafford where he beat Spanish international goalkeeper Antonio Betancort with an awesome left-footed shot from inside the 18-yard area in the 36th minute of the tie. His scoring touch remained and he ended the season with a magnificent tally of 32 goals in 53 appearances in all competitions for Manchester United, including a goal in the unforgettable 4-1 triumph against Portuguese Champions Benfica in the European Cup Final at Wembley Stadium on the 29th of May.
At Wembley that night, Manchester United would be playing the kind of football other teams could only dream about. England international Bobby Charlton provided United with the lead after 53 minutes of entertaining action when he headed a cross delivered by Sadler past Jose Henrique and into the net, but Portugal midfielder Jaime Graca managed to equalise for Benfica as he beat Alex Stepney from close range in the 75th minute. Manchester United eventually won the enthralling contest in North London by a three goal margin courtesy of a goal each from Best, Brian Kidd, and Charlton in extra time, becoming the first English club ever to win the trophy. As well as hitting one of the goals against The Eagles of Lisbon, Georgie also finished as top goal scorer in the First Division, and the natural born entertainer was deservedly voted both English and European Player of the Year in 1968. Best, who was no longer the introvert and modest person he used to be when he first arrived at United eight years earlier, was now ready to take on more responsibility and aired his ambition to become captain of the club, but Busby refused on account of him being far too young.
PART FOUR
The 1968-69 campaign proved to be something of an anti-climax, with Manchester United finishing a mediocre eleventh in the First Division table and being knocked out of the FA Cup in the quarter-finals by Everton. In the European Cup, Manchester United suffered a 2-1 aggregate defeat in the semi-finals against eventual winners AC Milan, a team well-known for seeking to win matches because of relatively unorthodox methods, and in the Intercontinental Cup they lost to Copa Libertadores winners Estudiantes de La Plata by the same aggregate score. Manchester United, who had a fully fit first team squad at their disposal, initiated the season by beating a strong and powerful Everton side 2-1 before a sell-out attendance of 61,000 spectators at Old Trafford on the 10th of August through first-half goals from Best and Charlton, but then hit an inconsistent patch of form, picking up only three points in their next four games. Later that month, Scotland international Willie Morgan joined Manchester United from nearby Burnley, a club widely known for selling their best players, for a record transfer fee of £117,000 and the winger was presented with the iconic number seven shirt which until then had been worn by Best. Morgan was without the shadow of a doubt a highly talented player, but he was not one of a kind as Best was and any comparison to the latter would have been grossly unfair. After making the scoresheet in a dramatic and surprising 5-4 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough on the 31st of August, Best continued to stand head and shoulders above the rest and scored himself his first brace of the campaign in a 3-1 win over fellow mid-tablers Newcastle United at Old Trafford on the 21st of September, bringing his tally to four goals. On the 5th of October, The Troubles broke out in Northern Ireland.
Best inspired Manchester United to an astonishing two-goal comeback in a whirlwind 2-2 draw against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane on the 9th of October, but missed the agonising 2-0 loss to title challengers Liverpool at Anfield three days later because of injury. On the 16th of the same month, he received his marching orders for the first time in his round ball career in a brutal 1-1 Intercontinental Cup Second Leg draw with Osvaldo Zubeldía´s Estudiantes de La Plata side at Old Trafford where Morgan managed to score a late equaliser after Juan Ramon Veron, the father of Juan Sebastian Veron, had given The Rat Stabbers an early advantage. In mitigation, Best had been deliberately provoked several times by Jose Hugo Medina and he finally retaliated by punching the defender in the face with the result that both were sent off. Georgie soon got back on the scoring trail as he recorded a first-half goal in Manchester United´s eyebrow-raising 2-1 defeat to Southampton at Old Trafford on the following Saturday, and seven days later he notched up a double in a redeeming 3-2 triumph against freshly promoted Queens Park Rangers witnessed by a sell-out crowd of 31,000 people at Shepherd´s Bush. Manchester United experienced a slight slump in form, though, and the away victory over The Hoops in West London was followed by four consecutive draws against Leeds United, Sunderland, Ipswich Town, and Stoke City respectively, leaving the club sitting in 15th position in the First Division standings with a mere eighteen points collected from nineteen matches played. On the 30th of November, Georgie re-found his scoring touch, however, as he accompanied Law on the scoresheet in a routine 2-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Old Trafford where he registered the first goal of the afternoon with a terrific low shot that sped past visiting custodian Phil Parkes fourteen minutes into the second period.
With the New Year barely underway, Best was taken off with an ankle injury in the 70th minute of Manchester United´s 3-1 FA Cup Third Round win over Fourth Division Exeter City at St James Park on the 4th of January. After getting back to fitness, he scored the last goal in a reassuring 4-1 win against Sunderland at Old Trafford on the 19th of January, but Manchester United still found themselves in the wrong half of the table with 24 points from 26 fixtures. He maintained his scoring form as he notched a crucial goal in a 2-2 draw with Second Division Birmingham City in an FA Cup Fifth Round fixture at a full packed St Andrew´s on the 8th of February before netting again in a 2-2 draw to Wolverhampton at Molineux seven days later. On the 26th of February, he found the target twice in an European Cup Quarter-Final First Leg 3-0 triumph against Austrian Champions Rapid Vienna on home ground and another brace came during a 8-1 home mauling of table proppers Queens Park Rangers on the 19th of March. During a one-sided affair, Manchester United edged themselves ahead when Willie Morgan beat Queens Park Rangers goalkeeper Alan Spratley on the half-hour mark. United carried on attacking following the restart and Best scored a superb goal to make it 2-0 two minutes into the second half. Rodney Marsh managed to peg one back for the visitors two minutes past the hour mark, but the hosts regained their two goal lead when Best registered his second goal of the day some five minutes later. Morgan then made it 4-1 on 75 minutes before Nobby Stiles added a fifth goal in the 85th minute. With four minutes remaining on the watch, Morgan completed his hat-trick and with further goals from Brian Kidd and John Aston in the 88th and 89th minutes respectively Manchester United finished 8-1 winners.
Best, who was still a young man in his early twenties at the time, would continue to deliver consistently quality performances in an increasingly outdated and ageing Manchester United team whose best days appeared to be behind them. After registering the only goal in a sweet 1-0 revenge victory over Sheffield Wednesday at Old Trafford on the 22nd of March, the free flowing forward also hit the winner in an equally narrow 1-0 triumph against lowly placed Nottingham Forest at City Ground nine days later; this time from the penalty spot after Kidd had been fouled in the box by Welsh international Terry Hennessey five minutes into the second half. The away win over Forest moved Manchester United up to tenth position in the First Division table, but Best still had some unfinished business to take care of before the season was completed and five more goals would come, including a second-half brace in a 2-1 triumph against FA Cup holders West Bromwich at Old Trafford on the 2nd of April. And even though the 1968-69 term ended in mediocrity, he managed to clock up 22 goals in 55 appearances in all competitions for Manchester United, eight shy of top scorer Denis Law. And as soon as the campaign was over and done with, Best packed his bags and went on a well-earned holiday in sunny Majorca with up-and-coming 19-year-old actress Susan George to soak up the good things in life.
PART FIVE
Following the appointment of Wilf McGuinness as the new manager in the summer of 1969, Best would go on to be a constant source of goals for Manchester United during the 1969-70 season in which the club finished eighth in the First Division standings. McGuinness, a former midfield player with United, would take over a first team squad that included a number of internationals, but there were several dark clouds on the horizon. Despite having a good team on paper, Manchester United experienced a shaky start with three defeats in their first four fixtures, including a humiliating 4-1 defeat against Southampton at Old Trafford on the 16th of August and an equally humbling 3-0 loss to Everton at Goodison Park three days later. Scotland international Ian Ure, who had yet to reach his thirties, was immediately brought in from Arsenal by McGuinness for a transfer fee of around £80,000 in order to strengthen the leaky Manchester United defence and the club slowly but surely started to climb up the First Division table. After netting the opener in a 3-1 triumph against Sunderland at Old Trafford on the 30th of August, Best underlined his form by grabbing himself brace in an enthralling 2-2 draw to defending Football League Champions Leeds United at Elland Road on the 6th September and then hit another double in a 3-1 victory over Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough eleven days later.
Maintaining his prolific scoring form, Best notched himself a goal in a 2-2 draw with Arsenal at Highbury on the 20th of September and found the target in a 2-0 League Cup Third Round win against Fourth Division Wrexham on home soil three days after that, before netting his third brace of the campaign in a high-class 5-2 home victory over West Ham United on the last weekend of the month. Manchester United were two goals up thanks to headed goals from Francis Burns and George Best in the 5th and 12th minutes respectively before West Ham reduced the arrears when a flag-kick taken by Bermuda international Clyde Best, one of the first black players in English football, was converted by World Cup winner Geoff Hurst fourteen minutes later. Manchester United began the second half on the front foot and regained their two goal advantage when Charlton powered a low hard shot from inside the eighteen-yard area past West Ham and Scotland custodian Bobby Ferguson and into the bottom right-hand corner of the net six minutes past the hour mark. Ron Greenwood´s boys refused to hang their heads and gave themselves some renewed hope as Hurst nodded a perfectly delivered cross from Clyde Best into the net moments later, but Manchester United once again restored their two goal lead when George Best cooly headed home from close range in the 82nd minute, while Kidd rounded off the scoring with four minutes to go at Old Trafford. Georgie continued his exceptional form and scored in four games in a row; a 3-0 away triumph over Southampton on the 8th of October, a 2-1 home win against Ipswich Town three days later, a 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest on home soil the following weekend, and a 1-0 League Cup Fourth Round Replay victory at home to fellow First Division side Burnley two days afterwards.
On the 7th of February, Best scored a record breaking six goals in a stunning 8-2 triumph against Third Division opposition Northampton Town in an FA Cup Fifth Round encounter at County Ground, which was his first game after serving a suspension for criticising Wolverhampton referee Jack Taylor during the 2-1 League Cup Semi-Final First Leg defeat to eventual winners Manchester City at Maine Road a couple of months earlier. The Cobblers, led by manager Dave Bowen, had previously knocked out Southern League Weymouth, Fourth Division Exeter City, Southern League Brentwood Town, and fellow Third Division team Tranmere Rovers, whereas Manchester United had seen off First Division colleagues Ipswich Town and Manchester City. On a pitch which resembled a mud bath, Northampton defended well initially and it wasn’t until the 27th minute of the contest that the red-shirted visitors eventually hauled themselves into the lead when Best found the target with a header from a right-sided cross delivered by Kidd. The First Division club were firmly on top after that and their advantage was doubled nine minutes later as Best latched on to a smart through pass by Sadler and rounded shot stopper Kim Book, the brother of Manchester City defender Tony Book, to place the ball into the far bottom corner of the empty net. No more goals were produced before the half-time break, but Northampton´s defensive shortcomings would be brutally exposed by Manchester United in the second period.
Following the intermission, Best completed his treble in the 51st minute as he hammered the ball into the goal from a few yards out after a scramble inside the six-yard area. Northampton could have reduced the deficit when they were awarded a penalty shortly afterwards, but Frank Rankmore struck his spot-kick against the upright, and instead Manchester United increased their lead through Best who netted his fourth goal of the afternoon by heading another cross from Kidd into the net a couple of minutes past the hour mark. Provider then turned goal scorer as Kidd converted a corner from the left side taken by Morgan in the 69th minute before Best made it 6-0 to Manchester United with a calm and composed finish three minutes afterwards. The goals kept on coming as the match rolled on and Kidd added a seventh goal for the visiting team in the 78th minute of proceedings after Book had parried a low shot from Morgan. Dixie McNeil, who had joined Northampton from Southern League Corby Town for transfer fee of around £5,000 in the summer of 1969, pulled one back for the hosts a few moments later, but with four minutes remaining on the watch Best once again found the net after receiving a pin-point square pass from Crerand. Then, during the closing stages of the one sided-affair, a cross by Northampton favourite John Fairbrother found striking partner Frank Large who beat Stepney with a close-range header, making the final scoreline read 8-2 in the favour of the guests. Scoring a double hat-trick either side of the interval, Best once more proved his divine skills and in the immediate aftermath of his incredible performance at County Ground, he received an invitation to Number Ten Downing Street to meet Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who was himself an ardent football fan, for a private conversation. After thoroughly outclassing Northampton, Manchester United went on to overcome Second Division outfit Middlesbrough in the quarter-finals, but were later eliminated by double-chasing Leeds in the semi-finals.
After finding the net in a lively 3-3 home draw against Burnley on the 17th of March, Best carved his name into the scoresheet again with a late goal in a 7-0 home dismantling of West Bromwich on the 8th of April. West Brom had a lot of good players, including the likes of Jeff Astle, Tony Brown, Asa Hartford, Alistair Robertson, and Colin Suggett, but they never really stood a fair chance against a red-hot Manchester United team. The hosts, urged on by the home crowd, forced themselves in front thanks to a well-placed header from the often underrated John Fitzpatrick in the very first minute of play and doubled their lead through Charlton fourteen minutes later. Manchester United then had their third goal when Alan Gowling beat West Brom custodian John Osborne four minutes past the half-hour mark and increased their advantage further with goals by Fitzpatrick, Charlton, and Gowling in the 59th, 66th, and 76th minutes of action respectively. And with less than ten minutes remaining of normal time, Best registered the final goal of the day with an unstoppable effort to secure a sumptuous 7-0 triumph over The Throstles. Not resting on his laurels, Best netted Manchester United´s first goal in a 2-2 draw against eventually relegated Sheffield Wednesday at Old Trafford the following week and ended the campaign as the club´s top scorer with a total of 23 goals in 53 appearances.
The Troubles in Northern Ireland escalated during the summer of 1970, but everyday life had to go on nevertheless. On the 5th of August 1970, George Best became the first ever player in the world to score in a penalty shoot-out when he beat Hull City goalkeeper Ian MacKechnie, formerly with Arsenal and Southend United, from the spot in the Watney Mann Invitation Cup Semi-Final before 34,000 spectators at Boothferry Park. The Second Division club propelled themselves into an early 1-0 lead thanks to a spectacular volleyed goal by local hero Chris Chilton in the 11th minute of the pre-season clash before Denis Law equalised for Manchester United with a header from a Willie Morgan cross on 77 minutes to force the tie into extra-time. But with no more goals in the additional 30 minutes, the world´s first shoot-out was put into operation. Best stepped up to execute the first penalty, placing the ball on the spot before dispatching it past MacKechnie to put United in front. The next five penalties were also converted, but then Law saw his penalty effort saved by the Hull goalkeeper. The City supporters were quickly brought down to earth, though, when Ken Wagstaff, a £40,000 signing from Mansfield Town, missed on the fourth attempt for The Tigers and Morgan sent the subsequent penalty-kick into the net. In front of a 34,000 crowd, MacKechnie walked up to take Hull´s fifth penalty, only to watch his shot strike the crossbar to ensure that it all ended 4-3 in the favour of Manchester United.
Best also scored in the 4-1 Watney Cup Final defeat against Derby County at Baseball Ground on the 8th of August. Derby, who had knocked out Sheffield United in the semi-finals with a first-half goal from John McGovern, went into a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute of the final as a free-kick from captain Dave Mackay struck right post and fell to Roy McFarland who hammered the ball high into the roof of net from close range. County continued to push themselves forward and had their second goal just five minutes later through an audacious and cheeky back-heel effort by ex-Nottingham Forest winger Alan Hinton. Manchester United found a way back into proceedings in the 32nd minute when Best took advantage of a loose ball inside the 18-yard box and effortlessly slotted it low past Leslie Green and into the back of the goal to reduce the arrears for the away team, but Derby restored their two-goal advantage three minutes later courtesy of a fierce header from Alan Durban. Following the intermission, the white shirts carried on attacking and got their fourth goal of the day in the 73rd minute when Mackay hammered a powerful free-kick through the Manchester United wall beyond the reach of Stepney and into the left bottom left-hand corner of the net to seal a 4-1 victory on home soil.
Manchester United got off to a rather slow start to the 1970-71 campaign, winning only one of their five opening games and scoring just three goals in the process. As the campaign unfolded, Best ended his own personal scoring drought by bagging a goal in a spirited 2-0 triumph over defending First Division Champions Everton at Old Trafford on the 2nd of September and added another one to his tally when he netted in a 3-1 League Cup Second Round victory against Fourth Division minnows Aldershot at a sell-out Recreation Ground a week later. On the 12th of September, he scored a composed opener in Manchester United´s 2-0 triumph over Coventry City on home turf and a fortnight after that he was on the scoresheet again in a somewhat unsatisfactory 1-1 home draw with First Division newcomers Blackpool who were on the back foot from the start and spent most of the ninety minutes defending their goal line. And as the autumn wore on, Best hit the winner for Manchester United in an energy-sapping 2-1 League Cup Fourth Round victory over FA Cup holders Chelsea in front of a midweek crowd of 48,000 people at Old Trafford on the 28th of October and he was a driving force in a hard-earned 2-1 triumph against Nottingham Forest at City Ground on the 14th of November.
On the 28th of November, Best produced a goal in a 1-1 draw against fellow mid-tablers Huddersfield Town at Old Trafford and a week later he registered his 100th Football League goal for Manchester United when he scored in a 2-2 draw with third positioned Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane where a bumper crowd of more than 55,000 excited spectators had braved the freezing cold weather to watch the high-profile game. As the season approached the halfway point, Georgie delivered a fine performance in the tense 1-1 League Cup Semi-Final First Leg draw against Third Division club Aston Villa at Old Trafford on the 16th of December, and he put on an equally good show in the bitter 2-1 defeat in the return meeting at Villa Park the day before Christmas Eve. The 3-2 aggregate defeat against Villa was no doubt a harsh pill to swallow for McGuinness who was already under severe pressure from the United board because of the club’s mid-table standing. With the year winding down, however, Best grabbed himself an opportunistic close-range goal in a gripping 4-4 draw to Brian Clough´s Derby County at a snow covered Baseball Ground on Boxing Day, but the high-scoring result led to more questions than answers and it became quite evident that McGuinness had to go.
Now, as the calendar page turned from 1970 to 1971, Best was fined 250 pounds and given a six week suspended sentence by the FA Disciplinary Committee after receiving three cautions in twelve months. On the 5th of January, he registered a last minute consolation goal in a 2-1 FA Cup Third Round Replay defeat against Second Division outfit Middlesbrough at Ayresome Park, but was then suspended by interim manager Sir Matt Busby for two weeks after failing to turn up for Manchester United´s First Division fixture with old adversaries Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on the 9th of January. As the story went, Best had arrived late in London due to a missed train, but instead of joining his teammates at the Russel Square Hotel, he decided to spend the weekend with his actress girlfriend Sinead Cusack, the daughter of actor Cyril Cusack, at her apartment on Noel Road in Islington, which resulted in the couple being besieged by a horde of photographers and reporters for several days. Best later said that he was deeply sorry for bringing Cusack, who had been expecting a quiet and relaxing weekend, into a situation where she would become a prisoner in her own home.
There were talks of Best wanting to quit Manchester United in order to sign with one of the top clubs on the continent, but nothing materialised and things remained the same. On the 6th of February, he scored with a delightful lob in a 2-1 win over League Cup finalists Tottenham at Old Trafford and was one of the goalscorers in an unnecessary 4-3 defeat against West Bromwich at The Hawthorns on the 6th of March. Back in scoring mood, he was on the scoresheet alongside Denis Law in a 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford on the 13th of March and maintained his consistency as he registered a first-half brace in a 2-1 triumph against Stoke City at Victoria Ground the following week. On the 3rd of April, he added to his account in a 2-1 defeat to lowly placed West Ham at Upton Park and continued that form for the rest of the season, finishing with 21 goals in 48 appearances in all competitions. But despite his good goal scoring record, Manchester United once again ended up eighth in the First Division table and the club didn’t do especially well in the cups either, with surprise exits to Middlesbrough and Aston Villa in the FA Cup and League Cup.
After the expected resignation of Sir Matt in June 1971, Manchester United hired Leicester City manager Frank O´Farrell as the new head coach at Old Trafford. During the summer, midfielder Nobby Stiles had left the club to join Second Division Middlesbrough for the comparatively modest fee of £20,000, while defender Ian Ure had gone to Scottish Second Division St Mirren on a free transfer. On the last day of July, Best netted a late consolation goal for Manchester United by slotting the ball home from the spot in a shock 2-1 Watney Cup First Round defeat to Third Division Halifax Town at The Shay where Bill Atkins and Bob Wallace scored the goals for The Shaymen, with the latter converting a penalty-kick. Manchester United began their 1971-72 First Division campaign, which was their 27th consecutive season in the top tier of English football, with a battling 2-2 draw against an aggressive and strong Derby team at Baseball Ground on the 14th of August, with Best being a constant menace and threat to the opposition´s defence throughout both halves. Much to the displeasure of O´Farrell, he was dismissed for the first time in a domestic game when he was controversially sent off for allegedly verbally abusing official Norman Burtenshaw of Great Yarmouth during a 3-2 triumph over European Cup Winners´ Cup holders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on the 18th of August; with the result that the seasoned referee, who had been knocked down unconscious by furious Millwall supporters at The Den, a ground known for its intimidating atmosphere, after a Division Two game there on the 14th of October 1967, received death threats from angry Manchester United fans in the days following the episode. In the subsequent hearing, Best said that it all had been a misunderstanding between him and Burtenshaw, something which was backed up by Willie Morgan, and he escaped further censure from the Football Association. Now, the fact which remained was that he had lost his temper in the heat of the moment and the rest was conjecture.
Despite having a foot problem, Best registered his first top-flight goals of the term in a commanding 3-1 home win against West Bromwich on the 23rd of August and netted again in a deflating 1-1 draw to Wolverhampton away five days later before hitting the winner in a 1-0 victory at home against Ipswich Town on the first Saturday of September; the goal coming directly from a corner-kick two minutes ahead of the break. He bagged another brace in a 3-1 League Cup Second Round win over Ipswich at Portman Road on the 7th of September and registered a hat-trick in a 4-2 triumph against West Ham United at Old Trafford on the 18th of the same month. In front of a 53,000 strong crowd, Manchester United dominated from the outset and deservedly went ahead against The Hammers when a right-hand corner from Charlton was nodded on to George Best whose close-range header left away goalkeeper Bobby Ferguson completely helpless. West Ham managed to level the score moments later as Clyde Best powerfully headed home a perfectly delivered cross from the right flank by East Ham born defender John McDowell, only for George Best to restore the lead for the hosts with a sublime acrobatic goal a mere two minutes before the break. After the resumption, The Irons equalised for a second time as Trevor Brooking beat Stepney with a precise low effort from the edge of the penalty area early in the second period, but Manchester United came back even stronger and regained the advantage shortly afterwards thanks to Charlton who unleashed a low left-footed shot under the diving Ferguson and into the goal before Best completed his hat-trick with an incredible individual effort late in the game to make it 4-2. The two points gained moved Manchester United up to second in the table on fourteen points, two points behind Sheffield United who won their game against Leicester City at Filbert Street by a 1-0 score.
And, although he didn´t find the net, he was nothing but outstanding in the 2-2 draw to Liverpool at Anfield seven days later, spectacularly setting up second-half goals for striking partners Denis Law and Bobby Charlton. On the 2nd of October, he netted one his finest goals for Manchester United in a 2-0 triumph against newly promoted and table-toppers Sheffield United, watched by a crowd of more than 51,000 people at Old Trafford. The hosts, who were without the injured Law, were on the back foot early on but kept the visiting side at bay before the half-time break. Manchester United came back a lot stronger in the second period and with seven minutes remaining of normal time, Best broke the deadlock after a magnificent individual effort which saw him beat five bewildered rivals and place the ball past away goalkeeper John Hope and into the net via the far post. And to round off the scoring, Alan Gowling doubled the advantage for the home side in the 86th minute when he found the back of the net by heading an accurate cross from Kidd into the bottom right corner of the goal to complete a 2-0 home victory. Best then scored the decisive goal in a 1-0 win over fellow early pacesetters Derby County at Old Trafford a week later when he beat visiting shot stopper Colin Boulton with a stunning strike seven minutes into the second half, a goal which took the club to the very top of the First Division table. He also hit the winner in a tense 1-0 victory against Newcastle United at St James´ Park on the Saturday that followed and added further to his tally as he registered a consolation goal in a nail-biting 2-1 League Cup Fourth Round Second Replay defeat to Stoke City at Victoria Ground on the 15th of November.
With the season well under way, Best scored a hat-trick again in a 5-2 demolition of Southampton at The Dell on the last Saturday of November. In front of a lively crowd of 30,000 people, Best gave Manchester United the lead when he headed a neatly delivered cross from Kidd past Southampton goalkeeper Eric Martin and into the net in the seventh minute, and with the first half approaching its conclusion fellow Northern Ireland international Sammy McIlroy netted a second goal on 43 minutes to give the visitors a comfortable 2-0 advantage at the break. Following the interval, Best completed his treble with two brilliant finishes in the 47th and 58th minutes respectively before Ron Davies managed to reduce the deficit for Southampton a minute later. The match was not over yet, though, and Jimmy Gabriel added a second goal for Soton shortly afterwards, only for Kidd to make it 5-2 in United´s favour with six minutes left on the south coast. The result saw Manchester United progress to 30 points, consolidating the top spot in the standings. At the opposite end of the table, meanwhile, Crystal Palace were sitting rock bottom with a paltry ten points to show for their efforts.
Then, seemingly out of the blue, Best suffered a drastic loss of form midway through the campaign and he performed well below par in a dismal 3-0 defeat to an average West Ham United team at Boleyn Ground on New Year´s Day. And things went from bad to worse the following week as the sometimes mercurial player failed to report for training at The Cliff and was subsequently dropped by O´Farrell for the 3-1 defeat against an inform Wolverhampton Wanderers at Old Trafford on the 8th of January. A few days after the incident, the press brought to light that he had spent the week prior to the home fixture with Wolverhampton in the company of reigning Miss Great Britain Carolyn Moore, whom he had been introduced to at Blinkers nightclub in Manchester the previous month. He received a two-week fine of £400 on his return and eventually got back to his goal scoring ways as he targeted twice in a 4-1 FA Cup Third Round Replay victory over poor Southampton at Old Trafford on the 19th of January. And as the winter moved on, Best seemed to have found his old self and he was on the scoresheet alongside Morgan and Charlton in a 3-0 FA Cup Fifth Round Replay win against First Division promotion hunters Middlesbrough at a jam-packed Ayresome Park on the 29th of February after the two sides had played out a tight goalless draw at Old Trafford at the first time of asking. On the same day, Aberdeen defender Martin Buchan was signed by O’Farrell for a transfer fee of £120,000 and shortly afterwards the sought-after Ian Storey-Moore arrived from Nottingham Forest in a record-breaking £225,000 deal.
With the coming of spring, Manchester United, who still had a chance of qualifying for the UEFA Cup, managed to end a seven-match losing streak in the First Division, including a catastrophic 5-1 defeat to Leeds at Elland Road, by drawing 0-0 against Everton on the 8th of March, a game watched at Old Trafford by only 38,000 spectators. On the 11th of March, Best hit the opener in a 2-0 triumph at home to relegation candidates Huddersfield and, despite the fact he didn’t score, he was instrumental in a resounding 4-0 home win over Crystal Palace two weeks later. On the 18th of March, he scored a late equaliser in a 1-1 draw against newly crowned League Cup winners Stoke at Old Trafford in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup and a consolation in the 2-1 replay defeat at Victoria Ground on the 22nd of that month. With the 1971-72 campaign entering its final weeks, he scored a brilliant goal in a 3-2 victory over Coventry at Highfield Road on the 1st of April and rounded off his season with a converted penalty in a 3-0 revenge triumph against Stoke at Old Trafford on the penultimate day of the month. All in all, Best hit 26 goals in 53 appearances to finish as Manchester United´s top scorer once more, but his contribution was not enough to take the club into the UEFA Cup. Now, as it turned out, Derby won the First Division with 58 points, one point above Leeds, Liverpool, and Manchester City, six points ahead of Arsenal, seven points clear of Spurs, and ten points more than Chelsea and United. Down at the other end of the table, Huddersfield finished bottom with 25 points, the same as Nottingham Forest.
There were rumours of George Best leaving Manchester United during the summer of 1972, but nothing came out of it and the key player of the team reported back to pre-season training in Manchester on the 10th of July after a prolonged holiday in Marbella in Spain. As for summer transfers, Francis Burns, John Aston, and Alan Gowling had been shipped out to Southampton, Luton Town, and Huddersfield Town respectively without the club signing any replacements, even though they had the financial power to plunge into the market. It remained a fact, however, that the first-team squad consisted mostly of either players who were past their prime, or inexperienced youngsters who were not good enough or ambitious enough in the first place. By far the most serious problem was a lack of depth in the squad and subsequent over-dependence on a few players and the club would experience an absolutely disastrous start to the 1972-73 campaign. On the opening day, Manchester United succumbed to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Ipswich Town at Old Trafford and then suffered a 2-0 loss to Liverpool at Anfield on the 15th of August before they lost by the exact same score against Everton at Goodison Park four days later; results which brought them to the very bottom of the table.
With the alarm bells ringing, Manchester United pulled themselves together and their first point of the season came in a competitive 1-1 draw against Leicester City at Old Trafford on the 23rd of August, with Best equalising from the penalty spot four minutes ahead of the interval after former Huddersfield Town frontman Frank Worthington had given The Filberts the upper hand in the 26th minute. Appearing to be back to his normal standard, Best totally dominated proceedings in a 2-2 draw with West Ham United at Boleyn Ground on the 2nd of September where he scored the opening goal with ten minutes gone on the clock and then had a shot that came off a defender and fell kindly to Storey-Moore to drive home in the 80th minute. On the 12th of September, he registered a second-half brace in a 3-1 League Cup Second Round win at home to Division Two outfit Oxford United and was the chief architect behind a dominant 3-0 home success over reigning First Division Champions Derby on the 23rd of that month. Manchester United began ferociously and came close to taking an early lead through ex-Manchester City striker Ronald “Wyn” Davies, whose dangerous header went narrowly over the visiting cross bar. The home team kept up the attacking pressure and broke the defensive deadlock three minutes past the half-hour mark when a superb high ball from Best found Storey-Moore who headed home from inside the eighteen-yard area. Spurred on by an inspired Best, the hosts continued their offensive play after the resumption and had their second goal six minutes past the hour mark as Davies took advantage of some terrible defending by the visitors to fire the ball past away custodian Colin Boulton and into the net. Manchester United dictated the game from there and added a third goal in the 81st minute of play when Best sent an excellent through ball to Morgan who netted with a low shot to seal a 3-0 victory.
Despite of the win against The Rams, which could have been even more comprehensive, Manchester United remained in the relegation zone with 6 points from 10 games. And with the season unfolding, Best failed to live up to his usual high standards and as a subsequent result the team as a whole suffered because of it. Manchester United, who now seemed content just to join in the First Division party rather than orchestrate it, would struggle against lesser teams and a string of poor results followed, including an uninspired 1-0 loss to Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on the 30th of September. As the autumn progressed, Best scored a penalty goal in 2-2 draw against West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns on the 7th of October, but missed from the spot in an unacceptable 2-1 League Cup Third Round Replay defeat to Third Division Bristol Rovers at Old Trafford four days later. He a played a vital role in a 1-0 win over Birmingham City at Old Trafford on the 14th of the same month and made an assist a 2-1 defeat against Newcastle United at St James´ Park the following week. After a drab and dour first half, Newcastle pulled themselves into the lead thanks to a goal by Terry Hibbitt, the older brother of Kenny Hibbitt, seven minutes past the hour mark and added a second through John Tudor in the 77th minute. The visiting side eventually woke up and reduced the arrears when Best set up Charlton to find the net seven minutes later, but the goal came too late and it ended with a win for the hosts. Evidently, Manchester United struggled for long periods at Gallowgate and the lacklustre defeat clearly showed that they had work to do both defensively and offensively if they were to progress up the First Division table. Then, following a dreadful 4-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on the 28th of October, Best rediscovered his striking touch as he notched Manchester United´s first goal during an encouraging 2-2 draw against fellow relegation zone dwellers Leicester City at Filbert Street on the 4th of November.
Manchester United managed to beat First Division title chasers Liverpool by a 2-0 score at Old Trafford on the 11th of November thanks to goals by Wyn Davies and former Bournemouth ace Ted MacDougall in the 44th and 53rd minutes respectively, but then came a crushing 3-0 defeat against Manchester City at Maine Road a week later. And as for Best, who had been an integral constituent in one of the greatest sides ever seen on a football field, he now seemed to have lost his appetite and passion for the game, and the sometimes broody and moody entertainer would become more and more frustrated under the tottering leadership of O´Farrell. To add to the problems at the free-falling club, Best was suspended and then placed on the transfer list by the highly-strung manager for disciplinary reasons, only to be given another chance shortly afterwards. After beating Southampton 2-1 at Old Trafford on the 25th of November, Manchester United won their first away fixture of the campaign when they defeated freshly promoted Norwich City 2-0 at Carrow Road on the 2nd of December, a match in which Best did not appear, but as the days grew darker and Christmas approached, O´Farrell had increasing difficulty in getting players to commit themselves and there was little or no improvement in results or style despite of his exploits in the transfer market. On the 9th of December, Manchester United succumbed to a sickening 2-0 loss at the hands of a rather limited and mediocre Stoke City side at Old Trafford where their weaknesses were fully exposed and the writing would soon be on the wall. And following a demoralising and damaging 5-0 defeat against fellow relegation strugglers Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park seven days later, Tommy Docherty took over the managerial reigns at Old Trafford right in the middle of the season. In the meantime, Best had already left Manchester United, stating he wanted to retire.
Best, who still had the ability to attract widespread attention and large crowds, made a long-awaited comeback for the 1973-74 campaign, but at the fag end of his Manchester United career it was apparent for all to see that he had gone completely over the top, drinking and rambling to excess. Docherty´s United had started the season with two victories in their first three fixtures, but this was followed by five defeats in their next eight games and the club were sitting in eighteenth place in the top-flight table with only eight points won from eleven matches, just one point above the dreaded drop zone. The Ulsterman, who had reported for training on the 10th of September, put in a reasonable performance against fellow relegation battlers Birmingham City in a 1-0 win watched by a crowd of nearly 50,000 onlookers at Old Trafford on the 20th of October and scored his first competitive goal in a year in the 2-1 defeat to League Cup holders Tottenham Hotspur before an attendance of over 42,000 people at White Hart Lane on the 10th of November. Alas, as the weeks went by and winter approached, Manchester United continued to show an inability to handle the pressure of their situation and several roller coaster performances were to follow. And although Georgie was on target again in a tight and unfortunate 3-2 loss against an opportunistic Coventry City side at Old Trafford on the 15th of December, his playing form started to dip and he became more and more erratic by the day. And despite of the fact that the footballer turned rock and roll star still could put on a good enough show to keep the Manchester United supporters excited and engaged, an inevitable personal tragedy was about to arrive at his very doorstep.
Docherty and Best had numerous deep personality conflicts with each other as time went on and the restless and wayward playboy player would make his swan song appearance for Manchester United at the age of only twenty-seven in an embarrassing 3-0 defeat at the hands of First Division new boys Queens Park Rangers in front of an attendance of over 32,000 people at Loftus Road in West London on New Year’s Day 1974. Former Manchester United forward Don Givens provided Queens Park Rangers with a 1-0 lead in the 17th minute of the tussle, and some fifteen minutes later his equally prolific striking partner Stan Bowles made it 2-0 to the hosts with a header from a corner-kick. Rangers continued to dominate following the break and had yet another goal when Bowles fired a superb angled shot past Stepney five minutes past the hour mark to give The Hoops a solid 3-0 advantage. Best had a few efforts as the second period wore on, but failed to trouble Phil Parkes in the Rangers goal. And when referee Derek Nippard of Bournemouth blew his whistle for full time, his Manchester United days would be over for good after labouring through 12 First Division appearances following his comeback. On the 3rd of January, he failed to turn up for training at The Cliff and was consequently dropped for the FA Cup Third Round encounter against Third Division side Plymouth Argyle at Old Trafford just two days later. Then, in demonstration of his managerial mettle, The Doc handed Georgie the sack shortly afterwards and the heartbroken player subsequently left his beloved Manchester United after having amassed a total of 179 goals in 470 first team matches for the once mighty football institution.
PART SIX
After leaving Manchester United in the dreary winter of 1974, Best had relatively short spells at National Football League club Jewish Guild of Johannesburg, Southern League Division One North side Dunstable Town, Fourth Division Stockport County, and League of Ireland team Cork Celtic. On the 20th of February 1976, he joined North American Soccer League outfit Los Angeles Aztecs, a club partly owned by Elton John, and was given his competitive debut in a 2-1 defeat against San Jose Earthquakes at Spartan Stadium on the 17th of April. Los Angeles finished the season in third place of the Pacific Conference Southern Division, but were defeated in the first round of the playoffs 2-0 by the Dallas Tornado at Ownby Stadium on the 18th of August 1976. During the 1976-77 and 1977-78 seasons, however, Georgie enjoyed something of a renaissance with Ernie Clay´s Fulham where he teamed up with household names like Les Barrett, Viv Busby, Jimmy Conway, Rodney Marsh, and Bobby Moore. After finding the back of the net in a 1-0 debut win over Bristol Rovers witnessed by nearly 22,000 spectators at Craven Cottage on the 4th of September 1976, he proceeded to score an absolutely stunning long-distance volley in a 2-1 League Cup Second Round Replay victory against Third Division outfit Peterborough United at London Road on the 7th of September and then put on a spectacular show in a 4-1 routing of Second Division novices Hereford United at The Cottage on the 25th of the same month.
Fulham kept on winning matches and were sitting seventh in the table in late December with 19 points gained, five points adrift of the promotion positions. But despite having big names in the side, they suffered a severe setback in the second part of the season and ended the 1976-77 campaign finishing in seventeenth place with 35 points won, just one point above the drop zone. On the 20th of May 1977, Best went back to the United States to appear for Los Angeles Aztecs whom he helped reach the playoffs where they were defeated by Seattle Sounders in the Conference Championships. He then re-joined Fulham for his second spell with the club and looked to be enjoying his football again, but eventually his relationship with manager Bobby Campbell, formerly a midfielder with Liverpool, Portsmouth, and Aldershot, turned sour and his final outing for the team came on the 16th November 1977 in a frenetic 3-3 draw with newly demoted Sunderland at Craven Cottage where he scored one of the goals. All in all, he produced ten goals in 47 appearances for The Cottagers before he returned to the United States and Los Angeles Aztecs on a permanent basis in late 1977.
Following 27 goals in 55 North American Soccer League outings for The Aztecs, Best then decided to join forces with Fort Lauderdale Strikers where he hit six top-flight goals in 28 games under Ron Newman during the 1978 and 1979 seasons. On the 16th of November 1979, he agreed to sign with Scottish Premier Division outfit Hibernian, who were then managed by former Famous Five forward Eddie Turnbull, and made his scoring debut in a 2-1 defeat to St Mirren in front of a bumper crowd at Love Street eight days later. He would go on to notch up three Premier Division goals in 13 appearances for The Hibees, but his night club lifestyle was taking its toll and he left Easter Road for North American Soccer League San Jose Earthquakes, then head coached by former Old Trafford teammate Bill Foulkes, at the back end of the 1979-80 campaign. Best, who had now reached the age of 34, returned to Hibernian, however, and made four Scottish First Division appearances for the newly relegated side in the 1980-81 season before he decided to move back to the United States to play for San Jose Earthquakes for whom he scored a total of 21 goals in 56 outings during his two spells at Spartan Stadium. He would later appear for Hong Kong First Division teams Sea Bee and Hong Kong Rangers, Third Division AFC Bournemouth, Australian National Soccer League Brisbane Lions, West Australian State Soccer League Osborne Park Galeb, Alliance Premier League Nuneaton Borough, and finally Northern Ireland Intermediate League Tobermore United where he finished his high-profile active playing career in 1984.
PART SEVEN
A Northern Ireland international, Best was handed his highly anticipated senior debut for the country of his birth by manager Bertie Peacock, formerly a defender at Coleraine, Glentoran, and Glasgow Celtic, in a 3-2 British Home Championship victory against Wales at Vetch Field in Swansea on the 15th of April 1964, and went on to collect 37 full caps for his homeland in the years to come. The lad from Cregagh Estate was a member of the Northern Ireland team which outclassed twice World Cup winners Uruguay by a 3-0 margin in a friendly fixture at Windsor Park then terraced on three sides, on the 29th April of 1964, and scored the first of his nine goals for The Green and White Army when he notched up the opener in a 2-1 World Cup Qualifier defeat to Switzerland at Stade Olympique de la Pontaise in the French speaking city of Lausanne on the 14th of November the same year. He came up with a late goal in a morale-boosting 4-0 World Cup Qualifier win over the footballing minnows of Albania at Windsor Park on the 7th of May 1965, and netted another in a 3-2 British Home Championship defeat against Scotland at Hampden Park on the 25th of the same month, while his greatest performance for his nation arrived in a 1-0 European Championship Qualifier win over The Tartan Terriers in front of a staggering crowd of 55,000 spectators at Windsor Park on the 21st of October 1967.
Playing the match of his life for Northern Ireland, the ultimate footballing genius, then aged 21 years, defeated Bobby Brown´s men single handed as he tormented the opposition’s defence throughout the game in Belfast. The Scottish players tried every trick in the book to stop him, but the Manchester United icon was full of youthful energy and dominated proceedings from the very start to the very finish. And although the defeat was narrow, Scotland, who fielded a team including Lisbon Lions Tommy Gemmell, Bobby Murdoch, Ronnie Simpson, and Willie Wallace, never really stood a chance against a Northern Ireland side blessed with the dangerous and inform Best. The decisive and only goal of the European Championship Qualifier came in the 67th minute when Coventry City midfielder David Clements took advantage of a poor clearance inside the penalty box and mercilessly fired the ball past Simpson and into the bottom left corner of the net. It certainly was a day to remember for the troubled people of Northern Ireland, but instead of celebrating until the early hours, Best chose on this occasion to spend the night with his family at Burren Way in the Cregagh Estate.
Best added yet another international goal to his tally when he was on target in Northern Ireland´s fine 4-1 World Cup Qualifier victory over Turkey at Windsor Park on the 23rd October 1968, a result which gave them hope of reaching the World Cup Finals for the first time since 1958. But Northern Ireland never qualified for the finals in Mexico and his frustration of playing in a team going nowhere came to the surface on the 18th of April 1970 when he was sent off for the first time in his international career for spitting and throwing mud at English referee Eric Jennings during a 1-0 British Home Championship defeat to Scotland at Windsor Park. Only three days later, though, he redeemed himself by scoring a wonderful individual goal in a 3-1 British Home Championship loss against England at a packed Wembley Stadium despite being booed every time he touched the ball. The Three Lions hauled themselves into an early lead when Tottenham midfielder Martin Peters headed home a corner from the right by Bobby Charlton, who was making his 100th appearance for his country, after six minutes of play. Northern Ireland began the second period the better of the two sides as Best received a soaring long ball from Clements and brilliantly outmaneuvered Nobby Stiles before unleashing a terrific low shot that flew past a bewildered Gordon Banks and into the right bottom corner of the net five minutes following the resumption of action. But only seven minutes later West Ham marksman Geoff Hurst restored the lead for England with a deflected header from a cross delivered by Everton defender Keith Newton and with less than ten minutes remaining Charlton netted a third goal for the hosts to seal a 3-1 triumph.
On the 3rd of February 1971, he converted from the penalty spot in a 3-0 European Championship Qualifier success against the eternal minnows of Cyprus at The Pancyprian Gymnastic Association Stadium in Nicosia, and registered a hat-trick in a 5-0 win in the return fixture at Windsor Park on the 21st of April. He probably scored the strangest goal of his international career, however, in a British Home Championship encounter with England at Windsor Park on the 15th of May the same year when he flicked the ball away from Banks and headed it into the back of the net. To the great frustration and anger of the home supporters, the goal was disallowed by Scottish official Alistair Mackenzie and Alf Ramsey´s side eventually won the affair 1-0 through a second-half goal by Leeds United dangerman Allan Clarke. Despite losing to The Three Lions in Belfast, Terry Neill´s Northern Ireland still managed a second place in the Home Championship as Best inspired his team-mates to a 1-0 victory over Scotland at Hampden Park where John Grieg of Glasgow Rangers was unlucky enough to put the ball into his own goal in the first half, and then a 1-0 win against Wales at Windsor Park, with Linfield midfielder Bryan Hamilton hitting the winner for the green shirts in the 27th minute.
Northern Ireland was not exactly a bastion of peace and Georgie Best, who never had any political ambitions, was alarmed when a man with an unmistakable Irish accent telephoned a national newspaper in London and threatened to shoot him down in the autumn of 1971. With The Troubles in Ulster at their height, the threats were taken seriously due to his Irish Protestant background, and he was forced to withdraw temporarily from the Northern Ireland Squad. Then, in May 1972, Best failed to report to the Northern Ireland team for the British Home Championship, and instead he went on holiday to Marbella in Spain to celebrate his 26th birthday. Later that year he was sent off for the second time in an international for kicking Lokomotiv Plovdi midfielder Hristo Boneva during a 3-0 European Championship Qualifying defeat to Bulgaria at Levski Stadium, named after Bulgarian national hero and revolutionary Vasil Levski, on the 18th of October, and as a consequence he was banned by FIFA for three games. On the 14th November 1973, he was finally back in action for Northern Ireland and had a decent game overall as the Ulstermen earned themselves a highly respectable a 1-1 draw against Portugal in a World Cup Qualifier at Estadio Jose Alvalade, home of Sporting Clube de Portugal, where Nottingham Forest defender Liam O’Kane notched a second-half equaliser for the visitors after Angola born Benfica striker Rui Jordao had given the Portuguese the lead in the first period of the contest.
Following a three-year absence, Best gave one of his finest performances for the Northern Ireland team in a 2-2 World Cup Qualifier draw against the Netherlands at Feyenoord´s De Kuip Stadium in Rotterdam on the 13th of October 1976. Danny Blanchflower´s boys went into an early lead when Chris McGrath of Tottenham headed home a right-sided cross delivered by Sammy McIlroy after a mere four minutes of action. Then, only a few moments later in the game, Best ridiculed Johan Cruyff as he nutmegged the FC Barcelona playmaker before raising his right arm into the air. Following the interval, the Dutchmen turned the game around through goals from Ajax sweeper Ruud Krol and Cruyff in the 64th and 66th minutes respectively, but with the clock ticking down Blackpool´s Derek Spence, on as a second-half substitute for first-half goal scorer McGrath, managed to equalise for the visitors from Ulster when he blasted in a rebound from the home goalkeeper from close range with a mere two minutes remaining of the tie. Tragically, his footballing life was all too often punctuated by problems both on and off the soccer pitch, and he would appear in his final international match in a 1-0 World Cup Qualifier defeat to the Netherlands at Windsor Park on the 12th of October 1977.
According to the esteemed and highly respected Sir Matt Busby, George Best was blessed with more individual ability and talent than any other footballer he had ever seen in his long and distinguished managerial career, and just like Seamus Heaney, Ireland’s first Nobel-winning poet since William Butler Yeats, Best was accepted by everyone on the Emerald Isle, and the iconic Old Trafford favourite was also the most popular sportsman by far in the whole of the country, regardless of politics, religion, and ethnic background. Unfortunately, his massive drinking problems destroyed his remarkable football career in the end. George Best Playing Career: Manchester United, Jewish Guild, Dunstable Town, Stockport County, Cork Celtic, Los Angeles Aztecs, Fulham, Los Angeles Aztecs, Fort Lauderdale Strikers, Hibernian, San Jose Earthquakes, Sea Bee, Hong Kong Rangers, AFC Bournemouth, Brisbane Lions, Osborne Park Galeb, Nuneaton Borough, Tobermore United. Playing Honours: English Football League First Division 1965, 1967, UEFA European Cup 1968.