English Football Legend – George Best

George Best is a legendary English footballer, whose name is still famous in the world of football. Even the current level and football result of top English teams like Manchester United are part of George Best’s legacy.

George Best grew up in Belfast in an ordinary family, where, in addition to him, were five other children. He started to play football at the age of 14 at a local football club. At the age of 15, George Best was spotted by Manchester United scout Bob Bishop.

He made his first team debut against West Bromwich Albion at the age of 17. Best’s talent and his football results skyrocketed in 1966. It was then that he scored two decisive goals in the match with Benfica, which brought Manchester United to the European Cup quarterfinals.

Since then, George Best had become perhaps the most important player at Manchester United, and that’s when he earned his nicknames :

• “The Fifth Beatle”.
• “Belfast Boy”.

He became one of the most recognizable footballers in England and Europe. The 1967/1968 season brought Best another trophy – a victory in the European Cup, but in addition to team victory, he also managed to win the title of the best football player of the year in Europe and a nomination for the honorary title of the world best football player of the year.

The decline of Best’s career

In 1969 Best opened two nightclubs in downtown Manchester: Oscar and Slack Alice. In addition to nightclubs, he became the owner of several fashion boutiques in partnership with other well-known Manchester United footballer Mike Summerby.  Unfortunately, at that point Best’s career began to plummet and Premier League fixtures today were no longer the same.

Due to the riotous lifestyle, lately Manchester United severed cooperation with Best, and he moved to Cork Celtic in 1975, where he played only three official matches:

• In 1976 he moved to Fulham.
• He had a good 1976/1977 season, but he was not as fast as before. At the end of the season, he left the English team and moved to the United States of America.

Playing for the Los Angeles Aztec team in his first season, George Best scored 15 goals in 24 games. Thanks to this achievement, he was chosen as the best midfielder of the American football league. In addition to his club career, George Best played 37 games for the national team, scoring 9 goals. The end of his career brought him another collapse in his life, he was imprisoned for three months for drunk driving. In 2005, George’s health deteriorated significantly and he was hospitalized in serious condition. He passed away on November 25. The cause of George Best’s death was alcohol. Best was one of the best English footballers and interest in the Premier League fixture today is to some extent his credit.