Jimmy Greaves

[OhForAGreavsie 5,892]

As noted elsewhere in the forum, Jimmy Greaves has passed away. Given I never knew the man I feel strangely sad today. The greatest Chelsea player of all time and probably the greatest English footballer ever. In his heyday Jimmy would have been an automatic pick for an all world eleven.

Simply the best.

 

 

 

[OhForAGreavsie 5,892]

If you watch highlights of Jimmy don't forget that they are not highlights of his entire career, they are only highlights from the games which were recorded. For the majority of his games no cameras were present. That's how it was in those days.

[Fulham Broadway 16,849]

Best bit about him as a bloke was he was self effacing, didnt take himself that seriously. 

SaInt n Greavsie - absolute classic 80s TV

Saint & Greavsie clip 14/12/1985 - YouTube

 

[OhForAGreavsie 5,892]

 

 

[OhForAGreavsie 5,892]

 

[Fulham Broadway 16,849]

Going to a very poignant match today having been a legend (oft overused moniker but not in this case), at both clubs

 

[Superblue 6,370]

11 minutes ago, Fulham Broadway said:

Going to a very poignant match today having been a legend (oft overused moniker but not in this case), at both clubs

 

It says a lot about the man and just how good he was that he's universally loved and respected across two clubs who really hate each other.

[Fulham Broadway 16,849]

3 minutes ago, Superblue_1986 said:

It says a lot about the man and just how good he was that he's universally loved and respected across two clubs who really hate each other.

The hate is unaffected 😍

[Fulham Broadway 16,849]

Never mind 150m for Kane

Greavsie around now in his peak would be 250-300m 

[OhForAGreavsie 5,892]

Sometime soon Harry Kane will break Jimmy Greaves's Spurs all time scoring record. There are some factors to be taken into account when comparing the players however: -

• Kane performs in an era where the pitches are far more conducive to attacking play.
• Kane has played his entire career under laws which are much more favourable for attackers than was the case in Jimmy's day.
• Kane has already played 33 more times for Spurs than Greaves did.
• Kane has scored more penalties for Spurs.
• For at least two of his Spurs' seasons Greaves was alcohol addicted.

Kane is a quality player, but he's right when he says Greaves was the best. Maybe one day there will be a better English goal scorer than Jimmy Greaves, but it hasn't happened yet. If it ever does, let's hope he's another Chelsea academy graduate.

Edited January 8, 2023 by OhForAGreavsie

[OhForAGreavsie 5,892]

Congratulations to Harry Kane on setting the new all time England men's scoring mark. He is an outstanding player. I maintain that his headed flick to make it 1-1 in the 2017 FA Cup Semi-final against us is one of the best finishes I've ever seen. It was genius. Speaking of genius however, I want to compare Kane's international record with that of the greatest English striker ever, James Peter Greaves.

Kane now has 54 goals for his country, compared to Jimmy's 44. Harry has played 24 more games than Jimmy did (81 vs 57). An extra 10 goals in 24 more games is not too shabby, but the real stat that sets the players apart is that Harry has netted 18 times from penalties at international level, while Jimmy scored; none, nada, zilch, zero. Exclude those 18 penalties and Harry would still be eight goals behind Jimmy, despite those extra 24 appearances. Kane is averaging 0.44 non-penalty goals per appearance for England. At that rate it would take him 18 more caps to catch Jimmy. and that would take his total number of caps to well over double Jimmy's number. 

Jimmy Greaves was a remarkable footballer. He was his nation's designated penalty taker for several seasons, but England were not awarded any spot kicks while he was on the pitch. He did score 19 pens at club level however. 19 taken, and 19 scored. Jimmy never missed a penalty.

I don't deny that there is a very good case for regarding Super Frank as Chelsea's greatest ever player but, for me, Jimmy takes that honour, Eden is second, and the other places are up for debate. I give high praise to Harry Kane, but he'd be the first to admit that he's no Jimmy Greaves.

Edited March 24, 2023 by OhForAGreavsie

[Fulham Broadway 16,849]

Jimmy on doing gay drug 'poppers' and booze. Funny