Peter Bonetti, the former Chelsea and England goalkeeper, has died at the age of 78 after a long illness.
Bonetti, nicknamed “The Cat”, made seven England appearances and spent almost two complete decades at Stamford Bridge, winning the FA Cup in 1970 and the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1971.
“All of us at Chelsea Football Club are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our brilliant former goalkeeper Peter Bonetti, who made an incredible 729 appearances for the Blues,” a club statement read. “Our former goalkeeper had been suffering from long-term illness. All at Chelsea wish to send our heartfelt and deepest condolences to Peter’s family and friends.
“Peter was a goalkeeping superstar of the 1960s and 1970s. The image of our injured goalie and his superhuman attempts to thwart the opposition in the 1970 FA Cup final replay is one of the heroic images of that famous match.”
According to the statement, Pele considered Bonetti to be one of the three best goalkeepers of all time, alongside Gordon Banks and Lev Yashin. Bonetti’s Chelsea spells were punctuated by a brief stint in the United States with St Louis Stars. He also had spells with Dundee United and Woking.
Bonetti appeared for England as a deputy for Banks at the 1970 World Cup finals, but the latter was always preferred. Bonetti was also a member of the 1966 World Cup-winning squad but did not play, belatedly receiving a winners’ medal in June 2009. He was twice promoted to the First Division with Chelsea and also won the 1964-65 League Cup.
Following his retirement from playing, he would work as a goalkeeping coach, notably under Kevin Keegan during his spells as manager of Newcastle, Fulham and Manchester City.