George Best (22 May 1946 – 25 November 2005) was a Northern Irish professional footballer who played as a right winger, spending most of his club career at Manchester United. A skillful dribbler, he is considered one of the greatest players of all time, along with being considered one of the most talented to play. He was named European Footballer of the Year in 1968 and came fifth in the FIFA Player of the Century vote. Best received plaudits for his playing style, which combined pace, skill, balance, feints, the ability to get past defenders and goalscoring. In 1999 he was on the six-man shortlist for the BBC's Sports Personality of the Century. He was an inaugural inductee into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002.
Born in Belfast, Best began his club career in England with Manchester United, with the scout who had spotted his talent at the age of 15 sending a telegram to manager Matt Busby which read: "I think I've found you a genius". After making his debut at age 17, he scored 179 goals in 470 appearances over 11 years and was the club's top goalscorer in the league for five consecutive seasons. He won two League titles, two Charity Shields and the European Cup with the club.
In international football, Best was capped 37 times for Northern Ireland between 1964 and 1977. A combination of the team's performance and his lack of fitness in 1982 meant that he never played in the finals of a major tournament. He considered his international career as being "recreational football", with the expectations placed on a smaller nation in Northern Ireland being much less than with his club. He is regarded as one of the greatest players never to have played at a World Cup. The Irish Football Association described him as the "greatest player to ever pull on the green shirt of Northern Ireland".
With his good looks, dark Beatle mop-top hair and playboy lifestyle, Best became one of the first media celebrity footballers, earning the nickname "o Quinto Beatle" by Portuguese press reporters after a stand-out performance for Manchester United in Lisbon in March 1966. However, his extravagant lifestyle led to various personal problems, most notably alcoholism, from which he suffered for the rest of his life. These issues affected him on and off the field, often causing controversy. Although conscious of his problems, he made light of them and was known for his intelligence and wit on the subject during periods of sobriety: "I spent a lot of money on booze, girls and fast cars – the rest I just squandered". After football, he spent some time as a football analyst, but his financial and health problems continued into his retirement. He died in 2005, aged 59, from complications from the immunosuppressive drugs he needed to take after a liver transplant in 2002.
Early years and family
thumb|right|Best grew up on the [[Cregagh estate, east Belfast. The playing fields in the estate where he played football as a boy, Cregagh Green, is protected for community recreation in perpetuity as a Fields in Trust Active Space.]] George Best was born on 22 May 1946 in Belfast, the first child of Richard "Dickie" Best (1919–2008) and Anne Withers (1922–1978). He was raised in the Cregagh estate in east Belfast. Best had five siblings: four sisters, Carol, Barbara, Julie, and Grace, and one brother, Ian Busby Best. Best's mother, herself an Irish hockey international, recalled that the boy was able to stand aged ten months and from then on was never seen without a ball at his feet, even taking one to bed. His father was a member of the Orange Order and as a boy George carried the strings of the banner in his local Cregagh lodge. In his autobiography, Best mentioned how important the Order was to his family. The Best family was raised in the Free Presbyterian faith.
In 1957, the academically gifted Best passed the 11-plus and went to Grosvenor High School, but he soon played truant as the school specialised in rugby union. Best then moved to Lisnasharragh Secondary School, reuniting him with friends from primary school and allowing him to focus on football. He played for Cregagh Boys Club. He grew up supporting Glentoran and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Anne Best died from alcoholism-related cardiovascular disease in 1978, at the age of 55. Best's father died on 16 April 2008, at the age of 88, in the Ulster Hospital in Dundonald, Northern Ireland.
Club career
Manchester United
At the age of 15, Best was discovered in Belfast by Manchester United scout Bob Bishop, whose telegram to United manager Matt Busby read: "I think I've found you a genius." His local club Glentoran had previously rejected him for being "too small and light". Best was subsequently given a trial and signed up by United's chief scout Joe Armstrong. His first time moving to the club, Best quickly became homesick and stayed for only two days before going back home to Northern Ireland. He returned to Manchester and spent two years as an amateur, as English clubs were not allowed to take Northern Irish players on as apprentices. He was given a job as an errand boy on the Manchester Ship Canal, allowing him to train with the club twice a week.
Best made his First Division debut, aged 17, on 14 September 1963 against West Bromwich Albion at Old Trafford in a 1–0 victory. He then dropped back into the reserves, before scoring his first goal for the first team in his second appearance in a 5–1 win over Burnley on 28 December.
They reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, where a defeat to West Ham United cost Best the chance to break a record. In the final Preston North End's Howard Kendall became the youngest ever player in a FA Cup Final – he shared the same birth date as Best. That same season, Best captained the Manchester United side that won the 1964 FA Youth Cup, the sixth FA Youth Cup won under the management of Jimmy Murphy and the first since the 1958 Munich air disaster.
Though opponents would often use rough play to try to stifle his technical ability, Busby ensured that "fierce, sometimes brutal" training sessions left Best well used to coping with tough challenges. In the 1964–65 season, his first full season as a first team regular, Best helped Manchester United to claim the league title. A 1–0 victory at Elland Road proved decisive as the title race came down to goal average between the "Red Devils" and bitter rivals Leeds United. Leeds managed to gain some measure of revenge though, by knocking Manchester United out of the FA Cup at the semi-final stage.
The rising star of English football, Best was catapulted to superstar status at the age of 19, when he scored two goals in a European Cup quarter-final match against Benfica at the Estádio da Luz on 9 March 1966. His impressive stand-out display allied with his dark Beatle mop-top hair, the Portuguese media dubbed him "O Quinto Beatle" ("the fifth Beatle"); on the team's return to England, Best was photographed on the airport tarmac in his new sombrero with the headline, "El Beatle". However United failed to win any major honours in the 1965–66 season. Best was injured from 26 March onwards, with a twisted knee following a bad tackle from a Preston North End player. United staff claimed it was light ligament damage, to keep Best on the field for the rest of the campaign. His last game of the season, his knee strapped-up, came on 13 April, a 2–0 defeat to Partizan Belgrade at Partizan Stadium.
The 1966–67 season was again successful, as Manchester United claimed the league title by four points. Best stated that "if the championship was decided on home games we would win it every season. This time our away games made the difference. We got into the right frame of mind." An ever-present all season long, he scored 10 goals in 45 games. He then helped the "Red Devils" to share the Charity Shield with a 3–3 draw with FA Cup winners Tottenham Hotspur. It was the first game to be broadcast in colour on British television.
Best scored twice against rivals Liverpool in a 2–0 win at Anfield and claimed a hat-trick against Newcastle United in a 6–0 home win on the penultimate league game of the season. However a home defeat to local rivals Manchester City proved costly, as City claimed the league title with a two-point lead over United. Yet the 1967–68 season was remembered by United fans for the European Cup win. After disposing of Maltese Hibernians, United advanced past Yugoslavian Sarajevo with a 2–1 home win. Best assisted John Aston for the first and scored the second himself and was described by Geoffrey Green of The Times as "the centrepiece of the chessboard ... a player full of fantasy; a player who lent magic to what might have been whimsy".
In the quarter-finals, United advanced past Polish club Górnik Zabrze 2–1 on aggregate, having held on to their aggregate lead in freezing temperatures in front of 105,000 at Silesian Stadium. Despite losing the away tie 1–0, Best described the defeat as "one of our best-ever performances, given all the unwelcome circumstances". Facing six times champions Real Madrid in the semi-finals, Best scored the only goal of the home fixture with a 15-yard strike that Alex Stepney described as one of Best's finest goals. In the tie at the Bernabéu, Best was marked effectively by Manuel Sanchís Martínez, but on the one time Best got the better of him he made a telling pass to Bill Foulkes, who calmly found the net, to level the game at 3–3 and to win the aggregate tie 4–3.
Days after returning to England, as the First Division's joint top-scorer, level on 28 goals with Southampton's Ron Davies, Best was presented with the FWA Footballer of the Year award, becoming the youngest ever recipient. Facing United in the European Cup Final at Wembley were Benfica. While his teammates rested, Best found "a novel way to relax" before the big game by sleeping with "a particular young lady called Sue". The game went into extra-time and, just after three minutes, Best went on a mazy run and beat goalkeeper José Henrique with a dummy before rolling the ball into the net with his left foot. Two further goals from Brian Kidd and Bobby Charlton settled the tie at 4–1. The victory was not only the pinnacle of Best's career, but arguably Manchester United's greatest achievement, considering the Munich air disaster had wiped out most of the Busby Babes just ten years previously. Best also won the Ballon d'Or in 1968 after receiving more votes than Bobby Charlton, Dragan Džajić and Franz Beckenbauer. This meant that he had won the three major honours in club football at the age of just 22: the league title, European Cup and European Player of the Year award. After this, a steady decline began.
Best's six goal performance earned him an invitation to No 10 Downing Street from UK Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who had also regularly written fan letters to him. In 2002 the British public voted Best's record breaking performance No. 26 in the list of the 100 Greatest Sporting Moments.
New manager Frank O'Farrell led United to an 8th-place finish in 1971–72. Highlights for Best included hat-tricks against West Ham United and Southampton, as well as a goal against Sheffield United that came after he beat four defenders in a mazy run. However, he was also sent off against Chelsea, was the subject of death threats and failed to turn up for training for a whole week in January. Instead, he spent his time with Miss Great Britain 1971, Carolyn Moore. With 27 goals in 54 appearances, Best finished as the club's top-scorer for the sixth – and final – consecutive season. Best then announced his retirement from football, but nevertheless turned up for pre-season training and continued to play.
thumb|upright|George Best memorabilia at the [[Manchester United museum at Old Trafford]]
United's decline continued in the 1972–73 season, as Best was part of the 'old guard clique' that barely talked to the newer, less talented players. Frustrated with the club's decline, Best went missing in December to party at the London nightclubs. He was suspended and transfer-listed at a value of £300,000. After O'Farrell was replaced as manager by Tommy Docherty, Best announced his retirement for a second time. He resumed training on 27 April.
Best's last competitive game for the club was on 1 January 1974 against Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road, which United lost 3–0. He failed to turn up for training three days later and was dropped by Docherty, though he claimed Docherty was deceitful with him. Best was arrested and charged with stealing a fur coat, passport and cheque book from Marjorie Wallace, but was later cleared of all charges. United went on to suffer relegation into the Second Division in 1973–74.
Best played at United when shirt numbers were assigned to a position and not the player. When Best played at right wing, he donned the number 7. As a left winger, where he played exclusively in his debut season and nearly all of the 1971–72 campaign, he wore the number 11. Best wore the number 8 shirt at inside right on occasion throughout the 1960s, but for more than half of his matches during 1970–71. He was playing at inside left (wearing the number 10) in 1972 when he famously walked out on United the first time but was back in the number 11 for the autumn of 1973 before leaving for good. Best even wore the number 9 jersey once for United, with Bobby Charlton injured, on 22 March 1969 at Old Trafford, scoring the only goal in a 1–0 win over Sheffield Wednesday. In total Best made 474 appearances for Manchester United in all competitions from 1963 to 1974 and scored 181 goals. Over the next decade he went into an increasingly rapid decline, drifting between several clubs, including spells in South Africa, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, Scotland and Australia.
In 1975, Best played three matches for Stockport County in the Fourth Division. He had a brief spell at Cork Celtic from December 1975 to January 1976. He made his League of Ireland debut against Drogheda United at Flower Lodge on 28 December. He played only three league games, the others against Bohemians and Shelbourne, but despite attracting big crowds he failed to score or impress. Being on a rolling contract with Cork his failure to show for a game saw him being dropped and subsequently leaving the club.
He had a brief resurgence in form with Second Division club Fulham from 1976–78, showing that, although he had lost some of his pace, he retained his skills. His time with the "Cottagers" is particularly remembered for a match against Hereford United on 25 September 1976 in which he jokingly tackled his own teammate and drinking mate, Rodney Marsh. Best and Marsh were drawn to the club by the presence of England World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore, and they were involved in exuberant goal celebrations.
thumb|right|upright|Best with the [[Los Angeles Aztecs circa 1978]]
Best played for three clubs in the United States: Los Angeles Aztecs, Fort Lauderdale Strikers and later San Jose Earthquakes; he also played for the Detroit Express on a European tour. Best was a success on the field, scoring 15 goals in 24 games in his first season with the Aztecs and named as the NASL's best midfielder in his second. He and manager Ken Adam opened "Bestie's Beach Club" (now called "The Underground" after the London subway system) in Hermosa Beach, California in the 1970s, and continued to operate it until the 1990s.
Best caused a stir when he returned to the UK to play for the Scottish club Hibernian. The club was suffering a decline in fortunes and was heading for relegation from the Premier Division, Even though Best failed to save Hibs from relegation, gates increased dramatically and the attendance quadrupled for his first match at Easter Road.
thumb|upright|Best in Hong Kong in 1982
He returned to the US to play for the San Jose Earthquakes in what was officially described as a "loan", though he only managed a handful of appearances for Hibs in the First Division in the following season.
In late 1982, AFC Bournemouth manager Don Megson signed the 36-year-old Best for the Third Division side. He remained there until the end of the 1982–83 season, when he retired from football at the age of 37. Best played in a friendly for Newry Town against Shamrock Rovers in August 1983, before ending his professional career exactly 20 years after joining Manchester United with a brief four-match stint playing for the Brisbane Lions in the Australian National Soccer League during the 1983 season. He also was a guest player for an exhibition match between Dee Why Football Club and Manly Warringah held on 27 July 1983; Dee Why won the match 2–1, with Best having scored the winning goal. On 29 October 1984, Best played as a special guest for Reading against the New Zealand national team in a friendly game, alongside 1966 World Cup winner Martin Peters. Reading were defeated 2–1.
On 8 August 1988, a testimonial match was held for Best at Windsor Park. Among the crowd were Sir Matt Busby, Jimmy Murphy and Bob Bishop, the scout who discovered him. Those playing included Osvaldo Ardiles, Johan Neeskens, Pat Jennings and Liam Brady.
International career
Best was capped 37 times for Northern Ireland, scoring nine goals. He is regarded as one of the greatest players never to have played at a World Cup, being "hamstrung in World Cup terms by hailing from a global minnow". As Gordon Banks, the English goalkeeper, released the ball in the air in order to kick the ball downfield, Best managed to kick the ball first, which sent the ball high over their heads and heading towards the open goal.
Style of play
A highly skilful winger, considered by several pundits to be one of the greatest dribblers in the history of the sport, Best received plaudits for his playing style, which combined pace, skill, balance, feints, two-footedness, goalscoring and the ability to get past defenders. Recalling Best's career and style of play, sports writer Patrick Barclay said: "In terms of ability he was the world's best footballer of all time. He could do almost anything – technically, speed, complete mastery of not only the ball but his own body. You could saw his legs away and he still wouldn't fall because his balance was uncanny, almost supernatural. Heading ability, passing ability, I mean it goes without saying the dribbling – he could beat anybody in any way he chose. For fun he'd play a one-two off the opponent's shins."