Bill Foulkes

Born: 05 Jan 1932
Signed: 01 Mar 1950
Debut: 13 Dec 1952 v Liverpool (A) League
Goals Total: 9
Appearances Total: 688
Position: Defender
Left United: 1 June 1970


An old-fashioned stopper who loved the physical challenge of facing a bustling centre-forward, Bill Foulkes trails only Sir Bobby Charlton and Ryan Giggs in United’s all-time appearance list with 688 appearances to his name.

For 18 seasons he gave a granite-like solidity to the Reds' rearguard, so much so that during nearly two decades at Old Trafford it was rare for Sir Matt Busby to omit him.

Foulkes joined United as an amateur in March 1950 and turned professional in August 1951 after leaving his mining job at Lea Green Colliery, St Helens. His United debut came half-way through the 1952/53

campaign as a right-back, but he later moved to his favoured position of centre-half. The positional switch suited Foulkes – he preferred to keep things simple, passing to his more gifted team-mates at the first opportunity. It was an approach that served him well.

A survivor of the Munich air crash, Foulkes captained a depleted United in the aftermath of the tragedy, leading the Reds to the 1958 FA Cup final. Defeat against Bolton Wanderers then was a bitter pill to swallow, but it was a rare one: in a distinguished career Foulkes won First Division championship medals in 1956, 1957, 1965 and 1967 and was back at Wembley, this time a winner, in the FA Cup final of 1963. Add to that his part in the 1968 European Cup-winning team and it’s somewhat surprising that he was capped only once by England, against Northern Ireland in October 1954.

Although noted more for stopping than scoring goals, Foulkes is fondly recalled for his happy knack of getting critical strikes. One in particular stands out – his goal against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in 1968, which helped put United into the European Cup final. He retired from playing in June 1970 but remained at Old Trafford as a coach, before moving on to coach and manage in other countries.