The former Manchester City captain and manager Tony Book has died at the age of 90. Book, whose honours as a City player included a First Division title in 1968 and an FA Cup a year later, also played for Bath City and Plymouth.
Manchester City said in a statement: “It is with huge sadness and the heaviest of hearts that we announce the passing of former Manchester City captain and manager Tony Book, aged 90. A true club legend in every sense of the word.” Book made 315 appearances for City between 1966 and 1974, scoring five goals.
He also won a League Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup in his days as a defender at City. As manager from 1974-79 he won the League Cup in 1976 and came second in the First Division in 1977, losing out to Liverpool by a point. Book later took an important role in the youth setup, helping to win the FA Youth Cup in 1986.
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Book spent much of his career with non-league Bath City in his home town and had Malcolm Allison, who managed him there, and some lies about his age to thank for his late breakthrough as a professional.
Allison signed Book for Toronto City in 1964, then brought him to Plymouth after telling the directors Book was 28, not 30, and advising the full‑back to doctor his birth certificate by two years.
Book was 32 when he signed for City for £17,000 and a tribute posted by the club on Tuesday said he was again purported to be two years younger to get the deal through. Allison was at that point the assistant to Joe Mercer.
Book continued to play for City until the age of 39 when, after a spell as caretaker manager, he became Ron Saunders’s assistant. When Saunders was sacked Book took over and was manager of the team that won 1-0 at Old Trafford in 1974 when Manchester United were relegated.
Book had two further spells in caretaker charge, in 1989 and 1993, and was part of Peter Reid’s coaching staff. He later became an honorary club president.
Former teammate Mike Summerbee told the club’s website: “I think he was one of the best defenders the club has ever signed – and that’s not being disrespectful to our other great defenders – he was just an exceptional player and a terrific reader of the game.
“He was also a very modest person, and he found it difficult to accept the praise heaped on his shoulders, sometimes because he didn’t think he deserved it.
“I was close friends with George Best, and he always said Tony was his most difficult opponent, which is quite a compliment given George’s talent. He was a superb man. Very humble, kind and he will be sadly missed.”
City’s chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, said: “For nearly 60 years Tony helped to shape Manchester City. Not just in what he contributed as a player, captain and manager but in the way he conducted himself. His hopes and ambitions for his club were matched only by his incredible humility regarding his own significant achievements.
“He will forever be remembered by our supporters as a man who helped to lay the foundations upon which unprecedented success could be built.”
