{"id":292100,"date":"2023-10-02T21:51:17","date_gmt":"2023-10-02T21:51:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/?p=292100"},"modified":"2023-10-02T21:51:17","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T21:51:17","slug":"franny-lee-obituary-oh-look-at-his-face-just-look-at-his-face","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/soccer\/franny-lee-obituary-oh-look-at-his-face-just-look-at-his-face\/","title":{"rendered":"FRANNY LEE OBITUARY: Oh, look at his face\u2026 just look at his face!"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>FRANNY LEE OBITUARY: Oh, look at his face\u2026 just look at his face! Pugnacious, trailblazing Man City striker dies aged 79, having been immortalised by Barry Davies&#8217;s famous commentary<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><span>Lee passed on Monday and will be remembered as one of English football&#8217;s best<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Davies&#8217; commentary back in 1974 encapsulated the great man in so many ways<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Click HERE to listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport&#8217;s &#8216;It&#8217;s All Kicking Off&#8217;<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The look on Franny Lee\u2019s face after the ball flew in is the part that Barry Davies still remembers of a goal which encapsulated the man in so many ways, and which was so special the commentator has shared in its legend.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Interesting,\u2019 Davies related, from behind a microphone, on a December night in 1974, as Lee gathered a ball back from Derby team-mate David Nish in front of a Radio Rentals advertising hoarding at Maine Road, span around Manchester City\u2019s defence and drove to the edge of the box.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Very interesting!\u2019 Davies continued, as Lee sent a sweet right-foot shot soaring beyond Joe Corrigan. And then, as Lee wheeled away in glee, came Davies\u2019s equally legendary observation. \u2018Oh, look at his face! Just look at his face!\u2019<\/p>\n<p>As the news of Lee\u2019s death, aged 79, arrived on Monday, Davies recalled those golden moments. \u2018He was like a schoolboy who had done something remarkable and knew it. That was Franny all over,\u2019 Davies told <span>Mail Sport<\/span>, reflecting on how repeating a few short words, rather than saying a lot, had created a useful soundtrack.<\/p>\n<p>It was \u2018Franny all over\u2019 because the goal summed up the supreme self-confidence of a wonderful striker who made his name in the peak years of Joe Mercer\u2019s title-winning City side, before leaving under a cloud that had never cleared, and was intent on extracting some vindication.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/02\/21\/76077093-12585799-Lee_received_a_CBE_for_services_to_football_and_charity_in_2016-a-44_1696277884954.jpg\" height=\"419\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Francis Lee passed away on Monday at the age of 79 and will be remembered as one of English football&#8217;s greatest characters<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/02\/21\/76076193-12585799-Lee_in_1970_was_one_of_City_s_most_famous_players_scoring_148_go-a-45_1696277890732.jpg\" height=\"484\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Lee was one of Manchester City&#8217;s most famous players, scoring 148 goals in 300 appearances for the club<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/02\/21\/76086997-12585799-image-a-46_1696278162259.jpg\" height=\"428\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Barry Davies&#8217; commentary in 1974, branding a Lee goal &#8216;interesting&#8217; before telling those listening to &#8216;look at his face&#8217; ensipsulted the man<\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p>Bolton were reluctant to sell him to City for \u00a360,000, but he walked away from the club anyway, having already extracted himself from a contract. He was out of the game for three weeks before playing a part in four years of sumptuous, iridescent City glory.<\/p>\n<p>The secretive manoeuvres which entailed Lee being asked to drive from a Bolton car park, in his second-hand Austin Cambridge, for a meeting with City, whose identity remained undisclosed to him, almost resulted in him running out of petrol on the edge of Manchester.<\/p>\n<h3>MANCHESTER CITY STATEMENT\u00a0<\/h3>\n<p>It is with the deepest sadness and heaviest of hearts we announce the passing of Francis Lee.<\/p>\n<p>A glittering eight-year spell as a player &#8230; ensures his position among Manchester City&#8217;s all-time greats is secure.<\/p>\n<p>Everyone at City would like to send their consolences.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>City had just been beaten by Manchester United and were on the fringes of the First Division\u2019s relegation zone. But Lee followed Mike Summerbee, Colin Todd, Tony Book and Neil Young into a squad which climbed into legend with wins at Old Trafford, White Hart Lane and St James\u2019 Park in the spring of 1968, winning the title in his first season.<\/p>\n<p>Lee scored the decisive goal in the 4-3 last-day win over Newcastle which secured that title, as well as the winning penalty in the European Cup Winners\u2019 Cup final victory over Gornik Zabrze and a \u2018perfect\u2019 hat-trick against city rivals United in 1970.<\/p>\n<p>He and Allison shared an unshakable belief. When they first met in a social club at Bolton, Allison told the forward he was going to make him a great player. \u2018Well, thank you very much but I think I\u2019m pretty good right now,\u2019 Lee replied.<\/p>\n<p>Allison loved the way Lee approached the game. \u2018He expected to win and when it didn\u2019t happen, he wasn\u2019t so much disappointed as astounded. It was an offence against nature,\u2019 he reflected.<\/p>\n<p>He had a reputation for diving, which some felt was harsh, with the nickname \u2018Lee Won Pen\u2019 taking over from \u2018Lee One Pen.\u2019 But it was not all clinical pre- calculation. This was the player who, after a \u2018disagreement\u2019 with Leeds United\u2019s Norman Hunter in 1975, threw multiple punches in the enforcer\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s now a YouTube classic. \u2018It wasn\u2019t play-acting, you know,\u2019 Lee related in later years. \u2018He had tapped me on the shoulder, hit me and split my lip with a gold ring.\u2019<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/02\/22\/76076001-12585799-Lee_began_his_career_at_Bolton_Wanderers_before_signing_for_City-a-49_1696281665489.jpg\" height=\"552\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Lee began his career at Bolton Wanderers before signing for City for a then record fee of of \u00a360,000 in 1967. Here he is pictured watching Man City against Blackpool in the 1997\/98 season<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/02\/22\/76080473-12585799-Former_Manchester_City_and_England_striker_Francis_Lee_has_died_-a-62_1696281831137.jpg\" height=\"799\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>He passes away after a long battle with cancer having played for City, Bolton Wanderers and Derby County\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>There was hubris in Allison\u2019s soaring belief, when taking over from Mercer, that \u2018we will win the European Cup. We will terrify Europe\u2019. Lee\u2019s position was threatened in 1972 by Allison signing Rodney Marsh \u2014 \u2018big Mal\u2019s big mistake\u2019 as he later put it. And when Peter Swales arrived as chairman, it was the beginning of the end of those best years of his life.<\/p>\n<p>Lee threatened to walk away if City didn\u2019t accept Derby\u2019s \u00a3100,000 offer. He made it clear to Swales what the club were missing. That goal for Dave MacKay\u2019s Derby against City helped his new team-mates to the 1974-75 title.<\/p>\n<p>Lee was by then an established England international. He won 27 caps in all, scoring 10 times, having made his debut in 1968 and featured in the side that reached the 1970 World Cup quarter-finals.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/02\/22\/76076989-12585799-Lee_also_won_27_caps_for_England_during_his_career_scoring_10_go-m-64_1696282050813.jpg\" height=\"670\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>He also won 27 caps for England during his career, scoring 10 goals in the process &#8211; here, he is pictured against Scotland in May 1971<\/p>\n<p>There was another chapter with City which for some will always cloud the memory of his role in their first great side. He bought the club from Swales in 1994, buying \u00a33million of shares to do so, and vowed to bring back days of \u2018champagne and happiness\u2019 as chairman. He categorically did not.<\/p>\n<p>Four deeply unhappy and unsuccessful years were populated with poor managerial appointments which set the club on a downward spiral. On this occasion, it was Lee providing the commentary which would be remembered down the decades.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018If cups were awarded for cock-ups, you would not be able to move in City\u2019s boardroom,\u2019 he admitted. City were relegated to the second tier and were on their way down to the third when he resigned in 1998.<\/p>\n<p>The most painful aspect was the split with two of the great 1970s team. He removed both Book and Colin Bell from the youth coaching set-up, delegating the job to club secretary Bernard Halford, who dismissed them in a rented business office. Bell, who died in 2021, said he could never forgive Lee.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/02\/21\/76077207-12585799-Lee_pictured_after_scoring_the_goal_which_won_City_the_league_ch-a-48_1696278190694.jpg\" height=\"422\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Lee is pictured after scoring the goal which won City the league championship back in 1968<\/p>\n<p>Lee carried his self-belief into the world of racehorse training, averaging 25 wins per season for six years before retiring in 2001. He retained shares in City until selling to Thaksin Shinawatra in 2007 and had continued to attend City games regularly.<\/p>\n<p>There were no days like his City playing days. When the BBC made a film about Davies\u2019s career to mark his departure in 2018, Lee was interviewed about that goal.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018He rather played it down,\u2019 Davies said on Monday, reflecting his sadness at the player\u2019s passing after a long battle with cancer. \u2018I got the impression he just didn\u2019t want to brag about it.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>But Lee never forgot the response that night from the City fans, who collectively acknowledged the beauty of the last goal he scored in their stadium. \u2018It was amazing how all the fans had stood up and applauded,\u2019 Lee remembered, many years on. \u2018You would have thought I\u2019d scored for City!\u2019<\/p>\n<h3>IT&#8217;S ALL KICKING OFF!\u00a0<\/h3>\n<p><span><span>It&#8217;s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span>It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/football\/article-12585799\/FRANNY-LEE-OBITUARY-immortalised-Barry-Davies.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>FRANNY LEE OBITUARY: Oh, look at his face\u2026 just look at his face! Pugnacious, trailblazing Man City striker dies aged 79, having been immortalised by Barry Davies&#8217;s famous commentary Lee passed on Monday and will be remembered as one of English football&#8217;s best Davies&#8217; commentary back in 1974 encapsulated the great man in so many [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":292099,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>FRANNY LEE OBITUARY: Oh, look at his face\u2026 just look at his face! - Sports Life Tale<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/soccer\/franny-lee-obituary-oh-look-at-his-face-just-look-at-his-face\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"FRANNY LEE OBITUARY: Oh, look at his face\u2026 just look at his face! - Sports Life Tale\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"FRANNY LEE OBITUARY: Oh, look at his face\u2026 just look at his face! 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