West Ham United and the world of football as a whole are mourning the death of Terry Venables, who has passed away at the age of 80.
Venables was born in Dagenham, which was part of Essex before becoming part of Greater London, in January 1943, the son of Barking-born father Fred and Welsh mother Myrtle.
A talented midfielder, the young Venables attracted the attention of London’s top clubs as a schoolboy, including West Ham, before signing as an apprentice for Chelsea at the age of 15 in 1958.
While he did not opt to join West Ham, it was while he was being scouted and courted by the Irons that defender and youth coach Malcolm Allison first came across his talents. It would be a relationship that was rekindled to great success nearly two decades later.
Meanwhile, Venables made his first-team debut for Chelsea in a 4-2 First Division defeat by West Ham at the Boleyn Ground in February 1960, in a game better known to Hammers fans for full-back John Bond scoring a hat-trick while playing as an emergency centre-forward.
Undeterred, Venables won the FA Youth Cup with the Blues in consecutive seasons in 1960 and 1961 and went on to become a regular starter for the west London club over the next five seasons, during which Chelsea suffered relegation, then won promotion back to the First Division and then won the League Cup in 1965. Venables also won two England caps in 1964.
At the age of 23, Venables moved to Tottenham Hotspur in 1966, forging another long-standing relationship which would sustain throughout his career. A year later, he took and passed his FA coaching badges, setting the stage for a managerial career that spanned over three decades.
Before that, however, Venables won the FA Cup with Spurs in 1967, then moved to a third London club, Queens Park Rangers, in 1969. It was there, under manager Gordon Jago, that he began taking coaching sessions and helped Rangers win promotion to the First Division in 1973.
The following year, 1974, Venables joined Allison’s Crystal Palace, where he ended his playing career before taking up a coaching role under the former Hammer’s guidance.
Palace were in the Third Division but reached the FA Cup semi-finals in 1976. Allison departed soon after, and Venables was appointed manager, creating young side dubbed the ‘Team of the Eighties’ and leading the Eagles to promotions in 1977 and 1979.
In 1980, he joined his old club Queens Park Rangers, led the Hoops to the 1982 FA Cup final as a Second Division club and promotion to the First Division a year later.
Such was his success that Spanish club Barcelona appointed him in 1984. Christened ‘El Tel’, he won La Liga, the Spanish Cup and reached the 1986 European Cup final – losing to Steaua Bucharest on penalties – in his three years in charge.
Venables returned to England with another of his old clubs, Tottenham, in 1987, and created an exciting team around the likes of Gary Lineker and Paul Gascoigne which won the FA Cup in 1991.
In 1994, he was appointed England manager and led the Three Lions on a thrilling run to the semi-finals, where they were defeated on penalties by Germany.
Post-England, Venables managed the Australia national team, returned for a second spell at Crystal Palace, had stints in the Premier League with Middlesbrough and Leeds United and then, fittingly, ended his coaching career as assistant to England manager Steve McClaren.
A charismatic character who earned the respect of his players wherever he worked, Venables was also a popular media personality and businessman and ended his working life running a hotel in Spain before retiring in 2019.
He is survived by his wife Yvette and his two children.
Everyone at West Ham United has been left deeply saddened by Terry Venables’ passing and would like to express their sincere condolences to his family and friends at this time.
