Celtic commission a statue of former manager Jock Stein
Stein led Celtic from 1956-1978, winning the European Cup and 10 league titles
Celtic are to erect a statue in memory of former manager Jock Stein outside their stadium in Glasgow.
Stein managed Celtic from 1965-1978 and became the first manager of a British side to win the European Cup in 1967.
He also also managed Dunfermline, Hibernian and Leeds before dying while manager of Scotland in 1985, aged 62.
Former Celtic captain and Lisbon Lion Billy McNeill said: "It's magnificent that Jock is to be honoured in this way at the club he loved so much."
Stein steered Scotland to the 1982 World Cup finals but suffered a fatal heart attack during a qualifying match in Wales on the way to the 1986 finals in Mexico.
As a player, Stein captained Celtic to Coronation Cup success when they beat Arsenal, Manchester United and Hibs to become the unofficial champions of Britain in 1953.
Jock Stein is a true great within the world of football
Former Celtic captain and manager Billy McNeill
In 1954, he led Celtic to their first league championship since 1938 and first league and Scottish Cup double since 1914.
Celtic chairman John Reid said: "2010 marks the 25th anniversary of Jock's passing. In this year, there will be great sadness as we remember the tragic events in Cardiff.
"Jock will forever be truly remembered as one of the world's football greats.
"He was a man of immense stature and someone who gave so much to Scottish football."
Stein was forced to retire as a player in 1954 after persistent ankle injuries and became the Celtic reserve coach before Dunfermline offered him his first managerial post in 1960.
He moved to Hibs in 1964. But, less than a year later, he moved to the Glasgow club.
Celtic had not won the league championship since Stein was captain 11 years earlier, but immediately the club embarked on an amazing sequence of nine titles in succession.
His finest moment came in 1967, when Celtic beat the Italian giants Inter Milan 2-1 in the National Stadium in Lisbon to win the European Cup.
He was seriously injured in a car crash in 1975 and took a year out of football while recuperating.
As manager of the national side, he took Scotland to the World Cup finals in Spain 1982 - then, on 10 September 1985 during a tense 1-1 draw in Wales, Stein collapsed on the touchline and was pronounced dead in the away changing-room after several attempts to revive him.
"Jock Stein is a true great within the world of football," added McNeill.
"It is magnificent that he is to be honoured in this way at the club he loved so much.
"He was one of the finest men and the greatest manager I ever worked with.
"Every Celtic supporter holds Jock Stein in equally high esteem and I know they will be delighted that he is to be remembered in this way."
George Stein, Jock's son, commented: "I am delighted that Celtic has chosen to commission this statue to commemorate the 25th anniversary of my father's death."
Celtic will also unveil of a plaque to commemorate former player and manager Tommy Burns on 27 March, ahead of the club's home match against another of his former clubs, Kilmarnock.
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
Bookmark with:
What are these?