Jimmy Greaves: Peter Shilton pays tribute to fellow England great and recalls ‘unbelievable’ Tottenham goal

Dan Kilpatrick @Dan_KP20 September 2021

Peter Shilton has recounted the helpless moment he was beaten by one of Jimmy Greaves's famous solo goals.

England great Shilton was a teenager when Greaves, who died on Sunday aged 81, scored a superb goal in Tottenham's 3-2 win over Leicester at White Hart Lane on October 5, 1968.

"I still remember it to this day, it was incredible," the goalkeeper said of the only time he faced Greaves.

"I was 18, fairly new in the team, and the great Pat Jennings kicked a ball three-quarters of the length of the pitch and it looked like it was going out into touch.

"Jimmy ran after it, controlled it, brought it inside and one of our players, Graham Cross, who was a terrific player, nearly ended up in the crowd. He didn't think it would stay in play.

"Jimmy came inside, shimmied past one defender and left him on the ground, shimmied past another and left him on the ground and came up to me.

"I prided myself on one-against-ones and he slipped it by me. We had a corner two minutes later and the crowd was still applauding Jimmy Greaves's goal. It was unbelievable."

Shilton has battled gambling addiction and says Greaves overcoming alcoholism to become one of the nation's best-loved TV pundits was testament to his character.

In Pictures | Jimmy Greaves

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"He was in a bad place, he was having a terrible time with drink," Shilton told BBC Radio 4. "It was ruining his life and to pull himself back from the abyss and have such a successful time with 'Saint and Greavsie' was just testament to his character.

“Sometimes these things grab hold of you and you can't do a lot about them until you face them and he certainly did. He was so funny, he always came out with a quip. He was just brilliant.

"He was a lovely man, very funny and down to earth and he overcame his demons. I read his book, I never put it down, and to recover and have a great career in TV like he did was a testament to him all around."

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