hungary legend puskas dies at 79

[liverbird04]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/6155766.stm

 

Obituary: Ferenc Puskas

 

Puskas scored four goals in the 1960 European Cup final for Real

 

Ferenc Puskas was the chief magician of the so-called Magical Magyars, the great Hungarian team of the 1950s that dominated world football.

Puskas was an odd-looking footballer. He was short, stocky, barrel-chested and overweight, could not head the ball and could use only his left foot.

 

But what a left foot.

 

When he came to Wembley in 1953, no one in Britain had seen ball skills like his before.

 

His stunning footballing ablility left England captain Billy Wright tackling air at Wembley and helped Hungary thrash England 6-3, their first defeat on home soil.

 

Tom Finney, who watched the game from the stands, spoke for everyone when he said: "I came away wondering to myself what we had been doing all these years."

 

Puskas was known as the 'Galloping Major', a reference to the fact that he played for an army team, Honved.

 

In his first season he scored 50 goals as he won the first of five Hungarian championships and in total scored 357 goals in 354 games.

 

He made his international debut at the age of 18 and went on to score a phenomenal 83 times in 84 internationals.

 

Disappointment came when West Germany caused a major upset by defeating Hungary in the 1954 World Cup Final.

 

The Hungarian uprising against their Soviet masters in 1956 led to the disintegration of the great national side.

 

Puskas was with the rest of his Honved team-mates in Spain when the revolt took place.

 

He defected to the West and within a year had been signed by Real Madrid, then Europe's leading club.

 

Puskas proceeded to form a sensational partnership with Alfredo Di Stefano and they became the heart of an outstanding Real side.

 

The high point of their achievements was their display in the 1960 European Cup final in front of 135,000 at Hampden Park.

 

In a truly memorable match, Real Madrid defeated Eintracht 7-3. Di Stefano scored a hat-trick, Puskas went one better with four.

 

However, Puskas did not have it all his own way in the European Cup.

 

In 1962 he scored a hat-trick in the final against Benfica but Real still lost 5-3 to their Portuguese opponents.

 

There was more disappointment a year later when Puskas, now playing for Spain, failed to inspire his team to success in the World Cup Finals in Chile.

 

Spain finished bottom of their group and Puskas failed to score in any of his four appearances for his adopted country.

 

But for Real his scoring rate of 512 goals in 528 matches helped the club win five successive league titles as well as that European title.

 

Puskas left Real in 1966 to concentrate on coaching. He had mediocre success until 1971 when he took the Greek side Panathinaikos to the European Cup Final, where they lost 2-0 to Ajax.

 

After the Hungarian uprising Puskas had not returned to the country, but he was finally allowed back in 1993 to become caretaker manager of the Hungarian side during the World Cup qualifiers.

 

Puskas, who was admitted to hospital in late 2000 with arteriosclerosis and was later diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, leaves a wife Erzsebet.

 

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/1035447.stm

Edited November 17, 2006 by liverbird04

[Leo No.8]

One of the game's greatest ever players and quite a character by all accounts.

 

A tubby chain smoker who won every major title in the countries in which he played and maintained an incredible scoring ratio throughout his career. Altzheimers is awful - imagine someone like him forgetting all the things he'd done which probably would have happened.

 

RIP, a true legend of the game.

[Murphman]

A true great, right up there with the Pele's and Maradonna's, RIP.

 

One of the game's greatest ever players and quite a character by all accounts.

 

. Altzheimers is awful - imagine someone like him forgetting all the things he'd done which probably would have happened.

 

RIP, a true legend of the game.

 

 

That also happened to Bob Paisley mate.

[Puskas]

Ferenc Puskas died this morning aged 79.

 

I've heard nothing but good things about him since I first arrived in Hungary, and I was inspired by the stories to use his name on this board.

 

83 goals in 84 games for Hungary. 4 goals in one European Cup Final for Real Madrid (won three European cups with them). 512 goals for Real in 528 matches. The star of the show during Englands first ever defeat at Wembley, when they were trounced 6:3 by the Magnificent Magyars.

 

A true footballing legend.

 

RIP.

[Puskas]

Simultaneous new topic. Could some one merge them please.

[Murphman]

Romario however was spotted ina supermarket this morning.

[Puskas]

Romario however was spotted ina supermarket this morning.

I posted it at the same time Murph. I've already asked for the threads to be merged. Ta.

[Herbie von Smalls]

'captain of hungary' must have been one of the first autobiographies i read as a kid.

 

great footballer and a true national hero.

 

You'll never walk alone

 

 

how's the atmosphere in budapest over this news, tim?

[smithdown]

RIP.

 

Me arl mate Ol' Joe will be waiting for him for a kickaround like in the Honved days.

[Ripley]

The great Hungarian player has died aged 79 after suffering from "Alzheimers" for some time

 

A reminder of Real's recent charity benefit for him

 

"The charity match organized for 78 year-old Hungarian football legend, Ferenc Puskas who is hospitalized suffering from a disease similar to Alzheimer, has raised only ?91,816 in favour of Puskas.

 

The Primera Liga club, which saw Puskas as the only player to score four goals in a European Cup final, when Real crushed Eintracht Frankfurt 7-3 at Hampden in 1960, snapped more than ?1,409,900 from the total ?1,717,990 raised. According to a spokesman for the Hungarian organizing company TriGranit, the Spanish club received ?1,305,840 in fees for their appearance, with additional ?104,095 for accommodation and other expenses. The ?216,279 balance, was paid for the stadium, security, and organizational expenses."

Edited November 17, 2006 by Ripley

[Murphman]

Silly old clunt you are Ripley.

[Leo No.8]

A true great, right up there with the Pele's and Maradonna's, RIP.

That also happened to Bob Paisley mate.

 

I actually didn't know that - poor Bob.

[Nerik]

RIP & YNWA Mr. Puskas.

 

One of the game's legends.

[Puskas]

how's the atmosphere in budapest over this news, tim?

I think the whole nation is going to be in mourning to be honest.

 

Hungarian PM:

"It's a rare moment when a whole country, a whole communtity mourns because of one man, remembers because of one man. This day is such a moment, but it can be declared without exaggeration: there are no Hungrarians who have been left untouched by the life of - and now the news of the death of - the one we knew and loved, Puskás Öcsi." (Puskás Öcsi = 'Buster' Puskás)

[mally]

The great Hungarian player has died aged 79 after suffering from "Alzheimers" for some time

 

A reminder of Real's recent charity benefit for him

 

"The charity match organized for 78 year-old Hungarian football legend, Ferenc Puskas who is hospitalized suffering from a disease similar to Alzheimer, has raised only ?91,816 in favour of Puskas.

 

The Primera Liga club, which saw Puskas as the only player to score four goals in a European Cup final, when Real crushed Eintracht Frankfurt 7-3 at Hampden in 1960, snapped more than ?1,409,900 from the total ?1,717,990 raised. According to a spokesman for the Hungarian organizing company TriGranit, the Spanish club received ?1,305,840 in fees for their appearance, with additional ?104,095 for accommodation and other expenses. The ?216,279 balance, was paid for the stadium, security, and organizational expenses."

 

 

not much suprises me these days but that's f***ing disgusting

[fyds]

RIP to the Galloping Major

C**ts To Material Madrid.

 

Very fine footballer indeed.

[Puskas]

The only man to score 4 in a European Cup Final, and here they are:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjNBsRmR3Q0

 

Remarkably, he also scored a hat-trick in another final, only to see his team lose 5-3.

[Murphman]

I actually didn't know that - poor Bob.

 

 

My Great Aunt died a couple of years ago, she suffered with it and her extended family suffered equally looking after her. So much so they sent her to the Bob Paisley respite home for a couple of weeks so her daughter and the family could go on holiday.

 

Apparently Bob died remembering nothing of Rome, neither in 1977 nor 1944. RIP both of them.

[Leo No.8]

I f*cking hate Madrid.

 

I didn't think I could hate them any more than I did, but reading that takes it to a whole new level. The people who run that club would do well in George Bush's cabinet; arrogant, power and money mad lunatics...

[Snookie]

Stunningly good footballer. A true great.

RIP.

[Cunny]

 

If only you'd give me my Lev Yashin poster back

six months ago i returned your brown anorak

but you keep forgetting

and its far too upsetting

so baby Ferenc Puskas to you, to you

Baby Ferenc Puskas to you

[Cunny]

 

If only youd give me my Lev Yashin poster back

six months ago i returned your brown anorak

but you keep forgetting

and its far too upsetting

so baby Ferenc Puskas to you, to you

Baby Ferenc Puskas to you

[Guest Portly]

Jim Baxter the former Scotland midfielder tells an amusing story about Puskas in his autobiography. Puskas was in Glasgow for some reason and Baxter invited him to a party in a dodgy tenement flat. When the party was in full swing, Baxter opened the door of the pantry to see Puskas' bare backside going up and down. He had established an international relationship with some of the local talent.

[Puskas]

To be fair, I also heard that Real Madrid had already been paying towards his care for 5 years.

 

It was reported in the Telegraph.

 

Don't know if that helps much, mind...

Edited November 17, 2006 by Puskas

[Cunny]

To be fair, I also heard that Real Madrid had already been paying towards his care for 5 years.

 

It was reported in the Telegraph.

 

Don't know if that helps much, mind...

 

 

which is more than Liverpool did with Bob Paisley.

the only person connected with LFC that had anything to do with Bob in his latter years was Kenny Dalglish - which when I found out I was disgusted at.