Remember him well leading the line at Spurs at the same time I was following Osgood as a teenager at Chelsea and saw both play - think they left their respective clubs about the same time. Same sort of laconic style, but totally different characters in the game. RIP Gilzean - shame Ossie would never get the same time on this Earth.
Gilzean with Greaves first and then Chivers. Lucky to see both partnerships a few times in the 60's and 70's. Gilzean was not the quickest but made up for it with speed of thought. Was brilliant in the air. RIP the King of White Hart Lane.
I was lucky to see Gilzean and Greaves together at White Heart Lane "The G Men" I always thought that Gilzean was the best at flicking the ball on with his head for Greaves to score. Also saw him with Chivers he played a different type of game with him but had the same effect. Although he played 2nd fiddle to Greaves & Chivers he still scored 93 goals in 343 games for Spurs and 169 in 190 games for Dundee.
The first game I saw when I left Ireland was the 1972 Eufa (or was it Inter cities Fairs Cup Final?) between Spurs and Wolves, second leg at White Hart Lane. Alan Gilzean played and it was a brilliant evening. Spurs drew 1-1 but lifted the trophy after a 2-1 win in the first leg at Molynieux. Saw him play in quite a few games after that for Tottenham. A class player. RIP.
One of my first football memories was of Alan Gilzean albeit fleeting, but liked what I saw of him. Twas hard when no one in the family liked football. RIP Alan Gilzean.
