Football manager

Born: September 15, 1944;

Died: 12 January 2017

GRAHAM Taylor, who has died of a suspected heart attack aged 72, was a former footballer who had a distinguished career as a league manager, overseeing 1000 games, but faced relentless criticism when he managed England from 1990 until 1993.

As a club manager, he led Watford, against all the odds, from the Fourth Division to runners-up in the old First Division and to the final of the 1984 FA Cup. He also took Aston Villa to second in the First Division.

He became England boss in 1990 but had a difficult time in charge of the national team. However, under his leadership England qualified for Euro 92 in Sweden, although Taylor resigned in 1993 after the team failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup.

Born in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, Taylor started out as a player, coming through the youth ranks with Scunthorpe, where his father was a sports reporter for the local newspaper.

The young Taylor transferred to Grimsby in 1962 and went on to play 189 league matches for them before transferring to Lincoln for £4,000. He eventually captained Lincoln, but was forced to retire in 1972 with a serious hip injury.

Taylor then pursued his interest in coaching, having qualified as the youngest ever Football Association coach when he was 21 years old and returned to Lincoln as manager, when he was 28.

Success followed there, with Taylor guiding Lincoln to the Fourth Division title in 1976, which drew him to the attention of the pop star Elton John, who was chairman of the Fourth Division side Watford.

Elton John's had big ambitions for Watford and dreamed of taking them from the Fourth Division to the First, but Taylor was wary. He told John that it would take at least a million pounds to get there; his chairman told him to go for it.

In the end, it took five seasons but in the 1982-83 season Watford finished second in the First Division, ahead of Manchester United. They also qualified for the UEFA cup. It was one of the most remarkable ascents in modern football.

The following season, Taylor steered Watford to the third round of the UEFA Cup as well as the FA Cup Final (they lost to Everton) before Taylor took on a new challenge as manager of Aston Villa in 1987.

He took charge at Villa following their relegation from the First Division in 1987 and restored them to the top flight at the first attempt. Two years after that, in 1990, they finished runners-up to Liverpool in the First Division.

That achievement was instrumental in securing him the England position.

The national side qualified for Euro 92 but the tournament was a tough one for England and their manager. His side failed to get out of their group and Taylor also substituted Gary Lineker, in the final group game when a goal was needed, in what proved to be the striker's final game for England.

The tabloid press in particular were brutal, with The Sun depicting Taylor as a turnip - an image which stuck. Taylor kept his job though, but failure to qualify for the 1994 World Cup in the United States led to his resignation in November 1993.

His stint in charge of the national team was the subject of the 1994 documentary An Impossible Job, which followed England's failed bid to reach the 1994 World Cup and some of his quotes in the documentary have gone down in football folklore.

"Listen Rob," he said to journalist Rob Shepherd ahead of a qualifier away to Holland in October 1993. "I cannot have faces like yours around about me, I can't. Rob, I'll tell you this now, if you were one of my players with a face like that I'd kick you out, you would never have a chance."

And this to a linesman in Rotterdam: "I was just saying to your colleague, the referee's got me the sack, thank him ever so much for that won't you."

Taylor returned for a time to his old side Watford before retiring in 2001. He later came out of managerial retirement to take charge of Villa for a second spell in 2002, a move which he later said he regretted.

He served as Watford's chairman from 2009 until 2012 and a stand was named in his honour in 2014.

Sir Elton John, Taylor's chairman at Watford, said Taylor had been like a brother to him.

He wrote: "We shared an unbreakable bond since we first met. We went on an incredible journey together and it will stay with me forever. We have become a leading English club because of his managerial wisdom and genius."

Taylor is survived by his wife Rita and two daughters.