Former Nottingham Forest and England footballer Trevor Francis has died aged 69 at his home in Marbella.
A short statement, released this morning on behalf of his family, reads: "Trevor Francis has died at the age of 69.
"He had a heart attack at his apartment in Spain this morning.
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"On behalf of the family, this has come as a huge shock to everybody.
"We are all very upset.
"He was a legendary footballer but he was also an extremely nice person."
The iconic footballer was England’s first ever £1M player after his transfer from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest and was a huge part of Forest’s win in the European Cup in 1979, where he scored the winning goal against Malmö.
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He won the European Cup again with the club the following year.
The Plymouth-born footballer worked as a manager between 1988 and 2003. His final manager role was at Crystal Palace, who left two decades ago in 2003.
During his stint as a manager, he also managed but Queen's Park Rangers and Sheffield Wednesday and Birmingham City
Not only did he play for a number of clubs in England but also the United States, Italy, Scotland and Australia.
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Francis died earlier on Monday (24 July) at his apartment close to Marbella, Spain. It is believed he died as a result of a heart attack.
ITV sports presenter and friend Gary Newborn said: “This is obviously a terrible shock for Trevor and his family and friends.
“He was revered throughout football and has his place assured in the history of the game.
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“But he was also an incredibly kind and popular man, who will be greatly missed by so, so many people.”
Newborn said Francis had a stent fitted after a heart attack he suffered 12 years ago, but appeared to be in good health.
"Since then he had stayed in incredible shape,” he added. “He power-walked daily and barely drank. That’s why this comes as such a shock.”
Tributes started pouring in shortly after the sad news of Francis’ death was announced. His former teammate Vic Anderson led the tributes by sharing a black and white image of the sports star alongside a written tribute.
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He wrote: "Just heard the unbelievable news regarding Trevor Francis, he was such a wonderful person and fabulous teammate he will be sadly missed, my condolences go to his family and friends RIP."
Featured Image Credit: David Cannon / Valerio Pennicino / Stringer / Getty