Ron Greenwood, the former England and West Ham manager, has died aged 84 following a long illness.
Sir Geoff Hurst, one of England’s World Cup winning heroes in 1966, said that Greenwood was the “single most influential figure in my career”.
Greenwood died at his home in Suffolk on Wednesday evening.
Sir Geoff said: “I am really sad to hear this. It would not be overstating the case to say that Ron Greenwood was the single most influential figure in my career. “
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He added: “I considered it a privilege to play for him. He opened the door to the world of modern football.”
Greenwood won West Ham its first FA Cup in 1964 and managed the club from 1961 to 1974, before continuing as general manager until 1977.
In 1965, West Ham also won the European Cup Winners Cup, beating TSV Munich 2-0 at Wembley.
Later, in 1977, after Don Revie quit England for the Middle East, Greenwood took over as national team manager and held the post for five years.
He was in charge for the European Championships in 1980 and the World Cup in Spain in 1982.
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As a player, Greenwood turned out for Chelsea, Bradford Park Avenue, Brentford, and Fulham. During a second Chelsea spell, he played in Ted Drake’s league-winning side of 1955.
He leaves a widow, Lucy, two children, five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Tributes poured in for the manager during the afternoon.
England goalkeeper Peter Shilton said Greenwood was “ahead of his time”.
He told Sky Sports News: “It’s very sad news. Ron was a real football man in the sense he loved to play the right way.
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“I think he was a bit ahead of his time in the 1960s and ‘70s when he was in charge of West Ham, when he had Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters because the way they played the game, they were really ahead of their time - it was great football to watch.”
Shilton added: “I was very lucky to be associated with the England team when Ron was in charge. He ended up picking me for the World Cup of 1982 in Spain, which was a very successful tournament and we were very close to getting to the semi-finals.”
Shilton said he “always felt the players respected Ron” and found him to be a “nice person”.
Tony Woodcock, the former Arsenal and Nottingham Forest forward, who made his England debut under Greenwood in 1978 said the manager’s attitude was “first class”.
He also told Sky Sports News: “”He was an absolute gentleman. People get the impression of a football man as being someone who is ranting and raving and charging around, but Ron was calm in all situations and he used to analyse all situations very, very well.
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“He was highly respected. You couldn’t dislike the man, he was an ambassador for football so it’s a very sad day for us all.”
Woodcock added: “I’m sure he could still manage England in these times.”