Liverpool legend and a member of England’s 1966 World Cup winning-side, Roger Hunt has passed away following a long illness on Monday evening.
Hunt is Liverpool’s second-highest goalscorer of all time with 285 goals in 492 appearances, with only Ian Rush ahead of the forward on 346.
The former England and Liverpool star played in all six matches at the 1966 World Cup and scored three goals.
He finished his international career with 34 caps to his name, which complimented the Jules Rimet trophy the national side won in Wembley.
Hunt joined the Reds from nearby amateur team Stockton Heath as a 20-year-old in July 1958 and spent 11-and-a-half hugely successful years at Anfield from 1958-1969.
His goalscoring record for the club stood until 1992 when Rush surpassed it on his way to 346 and was the leading goalscorer for eight seasons in a row.
However, no player has ever scored more league goals for Liverpool than Hunt’s total of 244.
Hunt made his debut for Liverpool in a 2-0 win over Scunthorpe United at Anfield in September 1959, scoring his first goal for the club on the occasion.
Hunt and the late Ian St John formed a strong partnership that spearheaded Liverpool’s team under Bill Shankly and won the Second Division, the FA Cup and two First Division titles.
Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp is quoted by The Guardian: “It’s really sad news and our thoughts and our love go to his family. Unfortunately, it feels too frequent in this moment we are saying farewell to these giants of our club.
“Roger Hunt comes second to no one in his importance in the history of Liverpool FC, that much is clear.
“To be the goalscoring catalyst of the Shankly team to actually achieve promotion and then go on to win those precious league titles and the FA Cup puts him in a bracket of LFC legends who are responsible for making us the club we are today. Not only that, he was also a World Cup winner in 1966, too.
“I am told the Kop christened him ‘Sir Roger’ for all his achievements. A goalscorer who never stopped working to help his teammates; I believe he would have fit in well within our current team.
“So, it is Sir Roger we will remember, honour and pay tribute to over the coming days. You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
A statement by Liverpool FC notes: “The thoughts of everybody at Liverpool FC are with Roger’s family and friends at this sad and difficult time.”
