LEGENDARY England goalkeeper Gordon Banks has passed away from cancer at the age of 81, his former club Stoke have confirmed.
Banks won the Three Lions' only ever World Cup in 1966 on home soil and famously pulled off a physics-defying save from a header by Brazil legend Pelé four years later in Mexico.
The Sheffield native had been undergoing spells of chemotherapy for several months and was visited by a number of former teammates in recent weeks as his health took a turn for the worst.
From the family of Gordon Banks
It is with great sadness that we announce that Gordon passed away peacefully overnight.
We are devastated to lose him but we have so many happy memories and could not have been more proud of him. pic.twitter.com/mg5GIgSoBb
— Stoke City FC (@stokecity) 12 February 2019
He passed away peacefully overnight with his loved-ones at his bedside, his family said.
"It is with great sadness that we announce that Gordon passed away peacefully overnight," they said in a statement released via Stoke City.
"We are devastated to lose him but we have so many happy memories and could not have been more proud of him."
of course there was THAT save, but its so much more we are mourning today. RIP Gordon Banks. @England legend, your legacy will live on. All my thoughts with the family pic.twitter.com/iyAKdH2Mfm
— Raheem Sterling (@sterling7) 12 February 2019
Oh no. Gordon Banks, an absolute hero of mine, and countless others, has died. @England’s World Cup winner was one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time, and such a lovely, lovely man. #RIPGordon
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) 12 February 2019
RIP Gordon Banks
A incredible keeper and it was a joy to have met and worked with him
A true gentleman— Neville Southall (@NevilleSouthall) 12 February 2019
A World Cup winner, a legend. RIP Gordon Banks pic.twitter.com/P3KqVH0fEJ
— Harry Maguire (@HarryMaguire93) 12 February 2019
Everyone at Leicester City Football Club would like to offer their sincere condolences to Gordon’s family and friends at this sad time.
— Leicester City (@LCFC) 12 February 2019
We’re deeply saddened to hear that Gordon Banks, our #WorldCup-winning goalkeeper, has passed away.
Our thoughts are with Gordon’s friends, family and supporters at this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/nbzncYBCFA
— England (@England) 12 February 2019
Banks is survived by his wife Ursula and their three children, Julia, Robert and Wendy.
Widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers in his position of all time, Banks was named FIFA goalkeeper of the year six times and earned 73 caps for England.
He made 628 club appearances during a 15-year career in the Football League, playing for Chesterfield, Leicester City and Stoke.
A League Cup winner with both the Foxes (1964) and the Potters (1972), Banks was won FWA Footballer of the Year in 1972, while also being named in FIFA's World Cup All-Star Team in 1966 after playing a key role in England's iconic 4-2 triumph at Wembley in the final against West Germany.
