Martin Chivers: Former Spurs and England forward dies aged 80

Former Tottenham and England forward Martin Chivers has died at the age of 80.

During his eight years in north London, the striker scored 174 goals in 367 outings to help the club win the League Cup twice, as well as the Uefa Cup.

He also scored 13 goals in his 24 appearances for England.

Tottenham said, external: “It is with immense sadness that we announce the passing of our legendary former striker, Martin Chivers.

“We extend our deepest sympathies to Martin’s family, friends and former team-mates at this incredibly sad time.

“Rest in peace, Martin. One of the all-time greats.”

Tottenham’s players wore black armbands for Wednesday’s match at Bournemouth to mark the club’s loss.

Before kick-off, manager Thomas Frank paid tribute to Chivers.

He told Sky Sports: “He’s one of our true legends winning three big titles, and one of our top scorers. All our thoughts go to the family and their loved ones.”

The Football Association, through its England social media accounts, said, external: “Our condolences go out to his friends and family at this sad time.”

Born in Southampton in April 1945, Chivers made his debut for his hometown club aged 17.

After scoring 106 goals in 190 appearances for the Saints, the forward was signed by Spurs manager Bill Nicholson in January 1968 for a fee of £125,000.

Later in his career, Chivers played in Switzerland and Norway either side of spells at Norwich City, Brighton and Dorchester Town, before retiring in 1983 after a brief spell at Barnet.

Steve Archibald, a prolific scorer for Tottenham in the early 1980s, said he had been inspired by growing up watching Chivers in action.

In a post on X, Archibald said: “Watched the great Martin Chivers before I became a pro, was an amazing watch, he was like Rolls Royce, so smooth in his movement, excellent in the air and a great finisher, but on top of all of that he was a really nice guy.”