Malcolm Allison dies at 83

The flamboyant former Manchester City manager Malcolm Allison died on Friday at the age of 83 after a long illness, DPA reported.

Remembered for his fedora and cigar, he was in the vanguard of the personality managers of the early seventies and, alongside Joe Mercer, led City to seven trophies in seven seasons from 1965.

Allison began his playing career at Charlton, but it was at West Ham United that he spent most of his career.

A solid defender who became a mentor to the young Bobby Moore, his career was ended in 1957 after tuberculosis led him to have a lung removed.

His early coaching career led him to Cambridge United, Bath City and Toronto, but it was at Plymouth that he made his name.

When Mercer became City manager in 1965 he appointed Allison as his coach. They won the First Division (1967-68), FA Cup (1969), League Cup (1970) and Cup Winners' Cup (1970).

Allison then took third-division Crystal Palace to the semi-final of the FA Cup in 1976.

He moved on to Galatasaray and Sporting, with whom he won the Portuguese championship in 1981.

Allison believed in progressive, passing football, and wrote the book Soccer for Thinkers explaining his philosophy.

He also gained notoriety for a series of alleged affairs, with Christine Keeler, who had been a key figure in the Profumo scandal, the singer Dorothy Squires, two Miss UKs and the porn star Fiona Richmond.