Trevor John Francis (19 April 1954 – 24 July 2023) was an English footballer who played as a forward for a number of clubs in England, the United States, Italy, Scotland and Australia. In 1979 he became Britain's first £1 million player following his transfer from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest. He scored the winning goal for Forest in the 1979 European Cup final against Malmö. He won the European Cup again with the club the following year.[5] At international level, he played for England 52 times between 1976 and 1986, scoring 12 goals, and played at the 1982 FIFA World Cup.
Trevor John Francis was born on 19 April 1954 in Plymouth, Devon.[6][7][8] His father, Roy, was a shift foreman with the local gas board and played football semi-professionally, his mother, Phyllis, did part-time sewing and tailoring, and he had two younger siblings.[9][7] Francis was educated at Pennycross primary school and Plymouth's Public Secondary School for Boys.[10] As a schoolboy, he was a prolific goalscorer;[7] at 14, he attended a Football Association course at the National Sports Centre at Bisham Abbey, and he joined Birmingham City as a 15-year-old school-leaver.[10]
Club career
Birmingham City
Francis quickly rose in status, making his debut for Birmingham City's first team in 1970, aged just 16. His talent was noted when, before his 17th birthday, he scored four goals in a match against Bolton Wanderers.[9] He ended his first season with 15 goals from just 22 games.[11] Birmingham City manager at the time, Freddie Goodwin, compared Francis to both Jimmy Greaves and Denis Law.[12]
On 30 October 1976, he scored one of Birmingham's most famous goals, when he turned away from the touchline and cut inside two Queens Park Rangersdefenders, constantly being forced backwards, before suddenly unleashing a 25-yard (23 m) shot.[13]
Nottingham Forest, the reigning First Division champions and League Cup holders managed by Brian Clough, put in a bid for Francis which totalled just over £1 million. No player had ever been sold between English clubs for a seven-figure fee before (the erstwhile record was less than half), and the deal was sealed, with Francis famously being introduced to the media by a manager impatient to play squash; Clough was in his red gym kit and carrying a racquet as he addressed the press conference.[16][17]
While recognised as the first British million-pound player,[18] the actual transfer fee for the player was £1,150,000, including 15% commission to the Football League. Clough wrote in his autobiography that the fee was £999,999, as he wanted to ensure the million-pound milestone did not go to the player's head; although Francis says that was a tongue-in-cheek remark by Clough.[19][20]
Nottingham Forest retained the League Cup shortly afterwards without the cup-tied Francis,[21][22] and made progress in the European Cup to the extent that they reached the semi-finals,[23] although Francis was not eligible to play in the competition until the final.[24] They won their semi-final, and in May 1979 Forest took on Swedish club Malmö in the final in Munich, and a major instalment of the huge investment money was repaid just before half time.[25]
The ball was spread to Forest's wingerJohn Robertson wide on the left and he took on two defenders at once to reach the byline and curl an awkward, outswinging cross towards the far post. Francis had already begun to sprint into position, but even so he had to increase his pace in order to reach the cross as it dropped, and ended up throwing himself low at the ball. He connected with his head and the ball diverted powerfully into the roof of the net.[26][27][28] Forest won the match 1–0 and footage of the goal was used in the opening titles to Match of the Day for some years afterwards. A giant picture of Francis stooping to head the ball remains on display in the main entrance and reception area of Forest's City Ground stadium.[29]
Even though the season ended there, Francis duly headed back to Detroit for another summer playing in the NASL, where once again he was named to the first XI alongside Johan Cruyff (Los Angeles Aztecs) and Giorgio Chinaglia (New York Cosmos),[30] despite playing only half the season. In his brief NASL career, Francis scored 36 goals in 33 regular season matches and had 18 assists.[31]
The injury kept Francis out of the game for over six months. He was sold to Manchester City in September 1981, this time for £1.2 million.[34] The deal caused behind-the-scenes friction at Manchester City. During negotiations City chairman Peter Swales informed manager John Bond that the club could not afford the transfer fee. Bond then issued an ultimatum: if Francis did not sign, Bond would resign.[34] Francis made a promising start at the club, scoring two goals against Stoke City on his debut, but over the course of the season he was frequently injured.[35] In total he scored 12 goals in 26 games and made the England squad for the 1982 World Cup.[12]
Back at his club, financial problems were again an issue. Francis' contract gave him a salary of £100,000 plus bonuses, which the club could no longer afford to pay to a player who regularly sustained injuries.[36]
Sampdoria
Later that summer, Francis was approached by Italian club Sampdoria, who paid Manchester City £700,000 for his services.[37] He helped win the 1984–85 Coppa Italia, in the same team as Scotland midfielder Graeme Souness, by scoring 9 goals in 11 games (top scorer of the Cup). It was the first time that Sampdoria had won the competition.[38]
Francis returned to Britain in September 1987 to join Rangers under Graeme Souness. Numerous English players were brought to the Scottish club by Souness as English clubs had been banned from European competition since the Heysel disaster.[40] Francis cost just £75,000, signed on a "pay-as-you-play" basis, and won the 1987–88 Scottish League Cup, scoring a penalty in the shootout.[41]
Queens Park Rangers
Francis signed for Queens Park Rangers on a free transfer in March 1988 and helped the team finish fifth in the First Division.[42] He scored 10 goals from 26 appearances in the first half of the 1988–89 season and took over as player-manager in December 1988 when Jim Smith moved to Newcastle United, but a knee injury in January 1989 put an end to his playing season.[42] He marked his return to the field in September 1989 with a hat-trick against Aston Villa,[42] but was replaced as manager by Don Howe in November 1989 and his playing contract was paid up a few days later.[43]
Francis left QPR in February 1990 to play for Sheffield Wednesday; despite gaining a good reputation amongst supporters, he could not help the club avoid relegation to the second tier under manager Ron Atkinson for the 1990–91 season.[46] However, that season he helped Wednesday win the League Cup, although he was a non-playing substitute in the final, and also gained promotion back to the top flight.[47][11]
International career
Francis played for England 52 times between 1977 and 1986 and scored 12 goals.[8] In 1977, he was given his first England cap by Don Revie, in a 2–0 loss against the Netherlands.[8] After missing out on Euro 1980 due to an Achilles injury,[48] Francis was named in the England squad for the 1982 World Cup in Spain. In the first round of the tournament, he scored in the group games against Czechoslovakia and Kuwait.[8] England were eliminated after goalless draws against both the host nation and West Germany.[49] In spring 1986, he made his 52nd and final appearance for England in a victory over Scotland, and was subsequently not selected for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.[8]
Managerial career
Sheffield Wednesday
After the departure of Ron Atkinson, Francis took over as manager of Sheffield Wednesday with popular support from club and supporters. He guided Wednesday to third-place finish in 1992.[50] The following year, Wednesday reached the FA Cup and League Cup finals, losing both to Arsenal, the former after a replay.[51] In 1994, Francis finally retired as a player, shortly before his 40th birthday.[52] He was dismissed as manager a year later after Wednesday finished 13th in the Premiership.[53]
In February 1992, Francis brought former French international Eric Cantona back from a poor discipline enforced hiatus in his career by inviting him for a trial at Sheffield Wednesday. However, as the snowy conditions meant that he could only evaluate Cantona on AstroTurf, Francis requested an extension to the trial to see whether Cantona could play on grass.[54] An outraged Cantona walked out on The Owls and was signed (without a trial) by Leeds United, inspiring first them and then Manchester United to success. In a 2012 interview Francis said that he had agreed to take Cantona on as a favour to Francis' former agent, Dennis Roach, and Michel Platini, who he knew from his time playing in Italy, when they approached him about taking on Cantona, and that it was intended as an opportunity for Cantona to put himself in the "shop window": Wednesday had only recently been promoted back to the top flight, with most of the squad still being on Second Division-level wages, and the club could not afford to sign him.[55]
Birmingham City
Francis was hired as Birmingham City as manager in 1996, with the club in the First Division. He guided Birmingham to 10th- and 7th-place finishes in his first two seasons, missing out on the playoffs on goal difference in the latter. Finishes of 4th, 4th and 5th in the next three seasons resulted in playoff entry, losing each time.[56]
Francis led Blues to the 2001 League Cup Final, in which they lost on penalties to Liverpool. He was dismissed in October that year. BBC Sport wrote "Francis the player was legendary. Francis the manager is the nearly man".[56]
Crystal Palace
Francis was manager of Crystal Palace from November 2001 to April 2003.[57][58] He was appointed by Crystal Palace chairman, Simon Jordan to replace Steve Bruce who had resigned as Crystal Palace manager with the intention of taking the manager's role at Birmingham City. Litigation had followed with Bruce being placed on "gardening leave".[59] Of the appointment Jordan said, "The last two or three weeks have not been easy. I'm bored of Steve Bruce and Birmingham and what I'm interested in is Trevor Francis and Crystal Palace." At the time Francis said that he had turned down four jobs before accepting the role at Crystal Palace.[57] Under his managership, Palace defeated a Gerard Houllier-managed Liverpool in an FA Cup fourth round replay at Anfield in February 2003[60] and beat Palace's main rivals, Brighton & Hove Albion, 5–0 in October 2002.[61] However, after the team's second failure to achieve promotion to the Premier League, Simon Jordan dismissed him, stating: "People know I am very unhappy with the selection of our players under Francis. We have a very strong squad and we should have done a lot better this season – a lot of lessons need to be learned from injury prevention and transfer policy."[58]
Personal life
Francis in 2009
Francis married Helen Allcard in 1974.[10] The couple had two children, Matthew and James.[10] On 5 April 2017, it was reported that Helen Francis had died.[62]
On 13 April 2012, Francis was reported to be recovering in hospital from a suspected heart attack.[63]
Francis died of a heart attack at his home near Marbella, Spain, on 24 July 2023. He was 69.[7][64][65]
Career statistics
Club
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
^ abBriggs, Simon (9 February 2009). "The day Trevor Francis broke football's £1m mark". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 24 July 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018. Francis is still remembered as the man who went for a million, yet never quite lived up to his billing.
^"Francis 'yes' to Forest". Evening Post. Bristol. 9 February 1979. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com. Forest are still involved in the European Cup but he will not be able to play for them until the final. An FA spokesman explained: 'He had to be signed by January 15 to play in the semi-finals.'
^Lamont, Tom (2 May 2009). "Frozen in time". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 July 2023. 'The £1m man puts his name on the score sheet, and returns a great deal of the cheque,' said commentator Barry Davies after Francis headed home.
^Ellington, Dave (11 September 2014). "A look back in time". Football Italia. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
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