Over this past weekend, Chelsea Football Club learned of the news that club legend Terry Venables had passed away at the age of 80 after battling an illness for an extended period of time. The midfielder is often viewed as one of the core pieces to the CFC teams of the 1960s. He was one of the examples of many that have gone through the youth system and reached major success on the professional pitch.
In his career in west London, Venables made over 200 senior appearances between 1959-1966. He entered the frame in a youthful group called “Docherty’s Diamonds”, named after the manager at the time, Tommy Docherty.
Even though he ended his career with Chelsea on a sour note, he produced some of the most notable moments in club history. He helped lift the club out of the Football League Second Division, never contributing to a team that did not finish outside the top-five in the top-flight after that.
In the 1965 League Cup final against Leicester City, Venables captained the team in both legs, netting a second half penalty to put the west Londoners up 2-1 at the time in the first leg. He knew how to find the back of the net. That’s not the only major example. In a Fairs Cup tie in 1965, Venables scored a hat-trick against Roma including an unbelievable volley that sent the CFC faithful into a frenzy.
We remembered former Blue, Terry Venables, before kick-off today. 💙 pic.twitter.com/2Nt9ObrfAD
— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) November 26, 2023
As a player, the ex-England boss was known to be “strong in the tackle and a brilliant passer of the ball”. Since his passing, almost everyone in the football world has given their take on the kind of impact he had on the English game especially, particularly the national team. Those included John Terry, Manchester United legend Gary Neville, Ange Postecoglou, and Jamie Carragher among others. Chelsea Women evened paid respects to the legend of English football with a moment of reflection this past weekend against that same club he beat in the League Cup final.
When you think of Venables, the first thing that probably comes to you mind is his career as a coach. Rightly so, the Dagenham native coached seven different clubs and two national teams before calling it quits on coaching in 2007. The Englishman most notably led Barcelona, and Tottenham, crafting playing styles that coaches today have adopted.
One of his club teammates at Chelsea Barry Bridges gave a thoughtful take on the player, and person Venables was:
"“Terry was a leader right from the start of his career. who came through during the same era. When he was captain I suppose he was only 19 or 20, but he did more to lead the team than the manager. He was the guvnor on the pitch and it was no surprise to see what he went on to achieve as a football manager himself.”"
R.I.P Terry.