GEORGE BEST
| Sports | Football Heroes |
Video description:
This episode of Football Heroes reveals the star footballer George Best along with his achievements, milestones, career, and more. Let's look into the real lives of our favorite football players and their accomplishments.
George Best (22 May 1946 – 25 November 2005) was a Northern Irish professional footballer who played as a winger, spending most of his club career at Manchester United. A skillful dribbler, he is considered one of the greatest players of all time, along with being considered one of the most talented to play. He was named European Footballer of the Year in 1968 and came fifth in the FIFA Player of the Century vote. Best received plaudits for his playing style, which combined pace, skill, balance, feints, goalscoring and the ability to get past defenders. His style of play captured the public's imagination, and in 1999 he was on the six-man short-list for the BBC's Sports Personality of the Century. He was an inaugural inductee into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002.
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| Sports | Football Heroes |
Video description:
This episode of Football Heroes reveals the star footballer George Best along with his achievements, milestones, career, and more. Let's look into the real lives of our favorite football players and their accomplishments.
George Best (22 May 1946 – 25 November 2005) was a Northern Irish professional footballer who played as a winger, spending most of his club career at Manchester United. A skillful dribbler, he is considered one of the greatest players of all time, along with being considered one of the most talented to play. He was named European Footballer of the Year in 1968 and came fifth in the FIFA Player of the Century vote. Best received plaudits for his playing style, which combined pace, skill, balance, feints, goalscoring and the ability to get past defenders. His style of play captured the public's imagination, and in 1999 he was on the six-man short-list for the BBC's Sports Personality of the Century. He was an inaugural inductee into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002.
About TRENDEST INFOTAINMENT:
Welcome to Trendest Infotainment, your ultimate destination for a diverse range of content that educates, entertains, and inspires! From in-depth celebrity biographies and fascinating history videos to the latest in science and technology, we bring you an expansive collection of infotainment videos. Explore the stories of legendary sports personalities, dive into the history of the World Wars, marvel at wildlife documentaries, and enjoy our informative and funny shorts. There’s something for everyone on Trendest Infotainment!
Subscribe now: www.youtube.com/@UCvtG20NOq0X7l7ru-z1yBhw
#Infotainment #Documentaries #HistoryVideos #ScienceAndTech #CelebrityBiographies
Follow Trendest Media:
• YouTube:
1) TRENDEST MOVIES: www.youtube.com/@TRENDEST_MOVIES_ENGLISH
2) TRENDEST KIDS: www.youtube.com/@TRENDEST_KIDS
• Instagram:
TRENDEST INFOTAINMENT: https://www.instagram.com/trendestinfotainment/
• Facebook:
TRENDEST INFOTAINMENT: https://www.facebook.com/TrendestInfotainment/
COPYRIGHT:
We hold the proper licenses for all videos published on YouTube. For any questions, please contact: mail@trendest.in
AYA Media Private Limited & TRENDEST Media Private Limited are companies registered under the laws of India and located in the state of Kerala, India.
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SportsTranscript
00:30The 60s and 70s were an exciting time for Northern Irish football fans.
00:39The name George Best was cemented in the hearts of local fans.
00:47His legacy lives in the hometown saying, Maradona good, Pele better, George Best.
00:55And mainly for his 11 years at Manchester United, George played for more than 15 clubs
01:00in a 21 year career.
01:07He passed away in 2005 after battling alcoholism for most of his adult life.
01:17George Best was born on the 22nd of May 1946 in Cragar, a district in South East Belfast
01:24which is centred on the Cragar Road.
01:32His hometown of Belfast is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland.
01:36He grew up in the Cragar Estate where as a boy he would play football on the open playing
01:41fields in the middle of the estate.
01:49He was discovered at the age of 15 in Belfast by Manchester United scout Bob Bishop.
02:01He eventually rose to fame wowing crowds with his pace, acceleration and poise.
02:12He was considered academically gifted in his early school years and equally gifted on the
02:16pitch.
02:23He was dubbed the fifth Beatle for his mop top good looks, similar celebrity profile
02:28and rock star lifestyle.
02:36However life in the fast lane soon led to the alcoholism which would eventually claim
02:41his life.
02:47On the pitch however George lived up to his profile.
02:51Playing as a winger or attacking midfielder his clubs enjoyed his attacking strides and
02:55prolific goal scoring.
02:57He earned his reputation as one of the stars of the game.
03:04He played in Manchester United's youth squad for two years after Bob sent a telegram to
03:08United manager Matt Busby saying I think I've found you a genius.
03:17Young George was elevated to the senior squad in 1963 where he played until 1974.
03:30George Best made his senior debut for Manchester United against West Bromwich Albion on the
03:3514th of September 1963 aged just 17.
03:40His age kept him out of the senior side for the first half of the season however he was
03:44given more opportunities after the new year and finished the season with 17 league appearances
03:50as United claimed second place.
03:53The next year was more successful for both parties with Man U winning the league title
03:58and George making 41 appearances.
04:01His profile took off from there peaking between 1966 and 1968.
04:06His club won the league title again in 67 and took out the European Cup the following
04:11year.
04:12George was crowned European Footballer of the Year in 1968.
04:17But after a stellar 67-68 season his troubles began.
04:22He developed problems with gambling, alcohol and women.
04:25His private life problems didn't have an immediate impact on his playing career however.
04:30Over the next few seasons he continued to be the club's top scorer.
04:34On the football pitch he was a virtuoso.
04:37His light frame and devastating pace afforded him incredible ball control.
04:42Able to play off both feet he terrorised defences, continually thwarting the opposition with
04:48his divine skills.
04:50Along with Bobby Charlton and Dennis Law, George formed part of the powerhouse United
04:55side which had been rebuilt after the infamous Munich Air Disaster of 1958.
05:02George's amazing skill and showmanship brought crowds flooding through the gates.
05:06He popularised the sport amongst the wider community, taking it beyond the bounds of
05:11the working class.
05:12He sparked interest among all types of people, increasing attendance at Old Trafford by a
05:17whopping 15,000 fans a game.
05:20As his fame grew so did his taste for the high life and after Matt Busby retired as
05:25manager in 1969 he sank into decline.
05:30He began acting up in games and skipping practice sessions.
05:34After knocking the ball out of a referee's hands after what he believed to be a bad call,
05:38new manager Wilf McGuinness suspended him for a month.
05:42His drinking began to affect his performance and his time at United was coming to an end.
05:47He played his last game on the 1st of January 1974 after 470 appearances for the club.
06:00George Best earned 37 caps for his national side from 1964 to 1977 but Northern Ireland
06:07could not compete with the standard of football played at Manchester United.
06:12George was never able to lift the team to World Cup qualification.
06:16Perhaps his most famous international appearance was against England on the 15th of May 1971.
06:23In his hometown of Belfast, George set the crowd alight when, as English goalkeeper Gordon
06:28Banks attempted to kick the ball downfield, he managed to get his foot to the ball just
06:33as Banks was releasing it, sending it over Banks' head towards the open goal.
06:39He then beat Banks to the ball, heading it into the goal.
06:42However, much to the disappointment of the home crowd, the goal was disallowed by referee
06:47Alistair McKenzie.
06:49George continued to gain selection throughout the 70s despite his fluctuating form and off-field
06:54indiscretions.
06:56His international career came to an end in 1977.
07:05George's hard partying lifestyle and off-field exploits were almost as famous as his actions
07:10on the pitch.
07:12He represented a new kind of football star.
07:15With his brooding looks, priceless talent and extravagant off-field life, he became
07:20a regular in the newspapers and tabloids.
07:24He not only appealed to football fans but to the wider public, who were fascinated by
07:28the goings-on in his private life.
07:30He was a marketing goldmine, with all kinds of merchandise from T-shirts to mugs sporting
07:35his face.
07:37At his peak, fans from all over the world were sending in as many as 10,000 letters
07:41a week.
07:43He played hard and partied harder, but as many a rockstar has found out, sooner or later
07:48the lifestyle catches up with you.
07:53George's drinking became a problem.
07:55It caused him to be late to training, which got him into trouble with long-time coach
07:59Sir Matt Busby.
08:02Just about now, George Best will be arriving back in Manchester, but he'll be 12 hours
08:06late for the training session he should have attended with the rest of his team this morning
08:10and for the much-publicised confrontation or showdown with his team manager.
08:14The Irish international was due to meet Sir Matt Busby to explain his actions over the
08:18last few days.
08:19Those in charge at Manchester United became increasingly frustrated with his erratic behaviour.
08:24Can you tell us why it all came undone when it looked so good at one time?
08:31I spoke to you just before you joined us and you seemed very happy with it all.
08:36Well George Best will be going back to Manchester by car later tonight.
08:40At lunchtime tomorrow he says he'll be going to see the boss, who's Sir Matt Busby.
08:45He's going to film him at The Cliff, which is United's training ground, to arrange this
08:49meeting with him.
08:51With his future hanging in the balance, George apologised to Matt Busby.
08:56Not only in saying he's sorry, he's prepared to make a gesture of good intent by agreeing
09:01to the conditions that I've laid down this morning.
09:03Do you think he has been under considerable pressure in the last few weeks or not?
09:06Is there genuine pressure on him?
09:08He has had some problems, yes, and I've been trying to help him with those, but they tend
09:15to get on top of George more than anybody else and instead of facing them he tends to
09:19opt out a little bit.
09:21This is something that's powerful to George and something he's aware of and something
09:26that we must try and continually help him to overcome and he doesn't wish to leave Manchester
09:30United either.
09:31He wants to continue playing for Manchester United.
09:33After going back on a decision to leave the club, he returned to training with his team-mates,
09:38hoping to reclaim his old form.
09:40However, he was never able to recapture it.
09:44George should have been reaching his prime, but with so much going on off the field, such
09:48as a sparring gambling problem, he never appeared fully committed.
09:53His club and the rest of the world would soon discover that far from being behind him, his
09:57troubles were only just beginning.
10:03Back in the headlines for all the wrong reasons, he was charged with drink driving, disappointing
10:08the many fans who had hoped to see their hero back in form on the pitch.
10:12It wasn't to be.
10:13In his defence, Mr Philip Havers described how Bess had been an alcoholic for several
10:21years.
10:22He was extremely remorseful and terrified at the prospect of prison.
10:26He'd received a very nasty shock indeed and appeared to have learned his lesson.
10:33He's making strenuous and quite dramatic efforts to overcome an alcohol problem and I don't
10:37really think prison's the best place for it.
10:39He is appalled at the prospect, as I think perhaps any ordinary guy, which is what George
10:43basically is, would be.
10:45I mean, it's not a circumstance with which he's terribly familiar and he's a pretty worried
10:48man at the moment.
10:49There's no question about that.
10:51George's focus was by now far removed from football.
10:54Instead, his biggest concern became avoiding a prison sentence.
10:58He professed his remorse to the court and the cameras.
11:02Well, obviously, it's like anyone who drinks the morning after, you always feel sorry,
11:09but it's always too late the morning after.
11:11So it's now up to me to knuckle down and sort my own problems out.
11:16By now, George's battle with the bottle was old news.
11:19It led to numerous controversies and indiscretions throughout his career.
11:24His drinking problem was made all the more sad when his mother, Anne, died from an alcohol-related
11:28illness in 1978.
11:31Unfortunately, George didn't learn from his mother's mistakes and despite his best efforts,
11:36he copped a jail sentence for the drink-driving charge.
11:41After his release from prison, he explained to the media that he had paid for his crimes
11:45and wanted that to be the end of it, though he still felt he'd been treated harshly.
11:53I did something that was wrong and I had to pay for it.
11:56I think I was a little bit punished, a little bit heavy, but as I say, not a very pleasant
12:03experience, but it's all behind me now.
12:05It's all been done with and hopefully, I'd like to think I've learned a little bit from it.
12:11In 1974, George left the club where he made all his fortunes and earned his reputation.
12:18After worsening form due to his alcoholism and other off-field exploits, he left Old
12:23Trafford a shadow of the former hero who joined the club at 17.
12:28Despite reneging on a previous decision to leave the club, this time there would be no
12:32second thoughts.
12:33George Best, you've had a night to think about it, you're still definitely quitting football?
12:37Yes, definitely, yeah.
12:38I made a decision and that's it.
12:40You went back on that decision once?
12:42Yes, well, I explained that in the letter I wrote to the board, why I came back.
12:46A lot of people had asked me and I reconsidered it and thought I'd have another go, but it
12:52just didn't work out, so this one is final.
12:54After 11 years, George Best and Manchester United finally parted ways.
13:02If George was treated a little bit favourably, obviously the players wouldn't like it.
13:08I'm not glad to see the batter George Best, I'd much rather he'd stayed and played well
13:13for us and tried hard and got us out of the trouble, but it wasn't to be.
13:18For more than a decade at Manchester United,
13:20he'd enjoyed incredible highs and endured staggering lows.
13:24He was a favourite son, but he had wandered down a dangerous path, and in the end, he
13:29strayed too far from the fold.
13:38George Best, you've had a night to think about it, you're still definitely quitting football?
13:42Yes, definitely, yeah.
13:44If George was treated a little bit favourably, obviously the players wouldn't like it.
13:47Although he'd clearly lost his once sparkling form, when he left United he was still only
13:5328 years old, an age at which most players reach their peak.
13:57He went on to play for a host of other teams, but never stayed at one club for more than
14:02a few seasons.
14:03He eventually retired in 1984 after playing a couple of games for a number of clubs as
14:09publicity stunts.
14:11George's lavish lifestyle eventually caught up with him.
14:15His alcohol addiction had done so much to damage his internal organs that in 2001, doctors
14:21declared he needed a liver transplant to stay alive.
14:24It was devastating news for George.
14:27This is the lowest point.
14:29I went to prison and I wasn't dying.
14:32This time I was.
14:34You can't get any lower than that.
14:37The first sign of his failing health had come earlier in the year when he was hospitalised
14:41with pneumonia.
14:42However, the latest news struck a blow to all football fans across the globe, and once
14:47again George Best was talk of the town for all the wrong reasons.
14:51As his health continued to deteriorate, a donor became available in August 2002, and
14:56Manchester United's favourite son went under the knife for a liver transplant.
15:01To everyone's delight, the operation was a success.
15:04It's nice to think that, well I personally have been given a new start, and with a bit
15:10of luck, a couple of kids, and get back to a little bit of normality.
15:19While George's idea of normality may have been different from that of most people, he
15:23was grateful for the second chance, and understood what had to be done to repay the favour.
15:29It's not only in old fools like me who need new livers, there's a lot of children
15:33involved, and a lot of people on waiting lists that desperately need help, and hopefully
15:39this will make people a lot more aware of what's exactly needed for the work involved
15:45in liver.
15:58With his history of alcoholism, the last thing George should have been thinking about was
16:02reuniting with his old destructive friend.
16:05But sadly, the lure of the liquor was just too great, and in 2003, he was spotted drinking
16:11white wine spritzers in public.
16:13Controversy erupted, and the English tabloids cried outrage.
16:17After receiving his liver transplant, everyone assumed that George would lay off the booze.
16:22However, Professor Roger Williams explained that a relapse wasn't out of the ordinary
16:26for someone who suffers from alcoholism.
16:28Here we have a lapse on George's part, which in a way is almost inevitable as part
16:40of the condition.
16:41We have a lapse, and we don't even know how much he's been drinking, and really
16:48it's as though the whole of the world has exploded.
16:52However, the professor's wise words didn't stem the flow of the community's disappointment
16:56in George.
16:57Even the publican who'd served him was in the firing line.
17:00I just sat down with a member of George's family on Friday night and I was explaining
17:04the situation, and obviously things have changed then.
17:08Now I know the situation, and for a family reason, I've decided not to serve George
17:13alcohol anymore.
17:16Concerns over George's health raised their head once again.
17:19Those close to him, who not so long ago had witnessed his miraculous recovery, were now
17:24fearing the worst.
17:26His ex-wife Alex helplessly watched him self-destruct.
17:31I feel awful for the family of the person who died to save George.
17:34The last week has been hell.
17:36He seems to be on a mission to self-destruct, and it's getting worse.
17:41Sadly, Alex could do nothing as George continued to drink himself to the grave.
17:45He loves life too much, and he has been told by the top professor in the world that if
17:53he does have a drink, then he will die.
17:56The condition of the once-invincible George continued to worsen.
17:59His health went downhill on a daily basis, and he was hospitalised in October 2005 with
18:05a kidney infection.
18:09Despite showing initial signs of recovery, he couldn't fight off the infection, and
18:13just over a month after being admitted, his death was announced on November 20, 2005.
18:19Tributes from his former teammates flooded in.
18:22He was the original superstar, and he was such a well-mannered, humble person, and that
18:28was George.
18:29Even though he had this superstar status, he was well-mannered, he was really a shy
18:34person.
18:35No matter what his public image was, he was a really shy, lovely lad.
18:40A super lad.
18:44His funeral, which was attended by hundreds and thousands of fans, was held at the Stormont
18:49Government Building in Northern Ireland.
18:52It's sad to say that he was here.
18:55We were delighted the way that the Manchester people were going to celebrate him.
19:01Along with the fans, past and present greats of the game paid their respect to Northern
19:06Ireland's most famous export.
19:08George will always be known for Manchester United, not for anybody else.
19:11I mean, it's just sad that when you think the great player that he was, and Jimmy Johnston
19:16as well, another great player who's getting buried tomorrow.
19:18They were just two great players.
19:20They both knew each other as well, and both respected each other's ability.
19:24Two fantastic players.
19:28Alex also said her final farewell at the service with the aid of a poem.
19:34We won't forget our Belfast boy.
19:36You filled our lives with so much joy.
19:40Your star will shine now in the sky.
19:43Farewell, our friend, but not goodbye.
19:48APPLAUSE
19:54Although he had had his controversial exploits off the pitch, nobody could deny George Best's
19:59place in the history of football, and his entitlement to a statue in his honour.
20:04To be fair, his private life wasn't all about partying and drinking.
20:08After a failed marriage to Angela MacDonald-Jaynes that ended in 1986, he married former air
20:14hostess and model Alex Percy.
20:18Despite being 26 years his junior, Alex and George seemed to be a good fit for each other,
20:25and married in 1995 at the Royal Borough of Kensington in Chelsea, London.
20:30Although it has been reported that George was violent towards her throughout the marriage,
20:34Alex stayed with the former football champion for nine years until their 2004 divorce.
20:40George! George!
20:43The issue of George's violence during their marriage was tackled in a biography entitled
20:47Bestie, in which Alex claimed she had been punched in the face by George on more than
20:52one occasion.
20:53George never denied the claim.
20:55Bestie, which was released in 1998 and co-written with Joe Lovejoy, is just one of the many
21:01books written about one of the most recognised footballers on the planet.
21:06However, Alex wasn't the only one of his exes to dish up dirt on Best and reveal his dark
21:12secrets in print.
21:13His first wife Angie released an autobiography in 2001, titled George and Me.
21:22Using her ex-husband's famous name to sell copies of her book, Angie provided an unflinching
21:28insight into George's decline from top flight football into alcoholism.
21:32She also wrote of her own battle to rebuild her life after their divorce.
21:40With a life story to rival a Hollywood blockbuster, George remains a figure of great fascination
21:45to all football fans and the general public alike.
21:48But it's easy to understand why there have been so many books written about the gifted
21:53midfielder.
21:54So far, more than 30 different books about George Best have found their way onto the
21:59shelves.
22:00The very first one, Best of Both Worlds, was published in 1968.
22:08Information on George was in such high demand by fans that he was given his own football
22:13annual, which ran for five years between 1968 and 1972.
22:19Books about the boy from Belfast continued to flood the shelves of bookstores right up
22:23until his death.
22:24His last ever autobiography was released just days before he was admitted into hospital
22:29in 2005.
22:31It was called Hard Tackles and Dirty Baths, the inside story of football's golden era.
22:40Sadly, it was this love for everything to do with George Best that may in some way have
22:45contributed to his early death.
22:47Becoming football's first megastar, he had no one to look to but himself.
22:52He had no one to look to in terms of a positive role model.
22:56Although his activities off the field will never be forgotten, there is no denying his
23:00achievements on the football pitch.
23:03In his prime, he was unquestionably the best, and his legacy to the game will remain forever.