Jimmy Adamson

Jimmy Adamson was a soccer enigma, revered by some, disliked by others—a supremely elegant player of the 1950s and early 1960s, a title winner, and a respected coach, but a manager whose spirit was ultimately shattered. In 1962, Adamson had the world at his feet: FA Cup finalist, Footballer of the Year and invited to become England manager, having been assistant at the World Cup in Chile. But Adamson said no. In 1970 he predicted that Burnley would become the "Team of the Seventies," but despotic chairman Bob Lord's selling policy saw the vision fade and die. Controversially sacked in 1976, Adamson moved to Sunderland and then endured two torrid years at Leeds United before turning his back on the game. This is a poignant story of broken dreams, failed ambitions, and personal tragedy, ending in estrangement from the club he loved. A story of what might have been.