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Jimmy Armfield had been a loyal and successful player, making
around 600 appearances for Blackpool and picking up 43 England caps
at right back. He moved into management with Bolton, steering them
to the Division 3 title in 1972-73, and after long consideration,
the Leeds board decided to bring him in to steady the ship after
the Clough turmoil.
By the time he took over, the poor start had already blown any
hope of retaining the League title, so he focused on going for the
European Cup. After cruising through the early rounds, Barcelona
were beaten at home and held to a 1-1 draw in the return at he Nou
Camp, setting up a final at the Parc des Princes against Bayern
Munich. Revie's old team - and Armfield's tactics - played
extremely well together, and for much of the match Leeds dominated
the game. But several dodgy refereeing decisions and a couple of
sucker goals blew the game and the Leeds fans rioted in disgust as
they were certain they had been robbed.
Armfield gradually managed to find some replacements for Revie's
aging players and the likes of Tony Currie, Arthur Graham and Brian
Flynn came together to form a moderately successful side. Despite
taking the team to a semi-final in 1977 and again in 1978, he was
sacked at the end of his third full year in charge - the board
wanted success and they wanted it now! Armfield went on to become a
leading adviser to the FA and remains a regular radio commentator
for the BBC.
David Brunt says: personly i enjoyed his time at leeds and could
you remind me of the team sheet for the 75 european cup final to
settle an argument
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