Bill Nicholson (26 January 1919 -23 October 2004) was a former Spurs’ player and later the clubs  most successful manager. His footballing career was interrupted by the Second World War but he would win both the second division title in 1950 and the first division title in 1951.  In May 1951 he was picked to play for England against Portugal, managing to score a goal within thirty seconds in a 5–2 victory. He never appeared for England again, though he was a reserve on twenty-two occasions. On his retirement as a player in 1955 he joined the Spurs coaching staff taking over the role of manager in October 1958.  In 1961 Tottenham won the first division title, making Nicholson one of the few people to have won the championship as both player and manager. In that same season Spurs won the FA cup, becoming the first team to win the ‘double’ in the twentieth century. The FA cup was retained in 1962 and in the following season Spurs won the European cup winners' cup by beating Atlético Madrid 5–1 - the first European trophy to be won by a British club.   This first great team was built round the flair of Danny Blanchflower and the toughness of Dave Mackay. In 1962 he added Jimmy Greaves from AC Milan for £99,999—deliberately keeping the transfer fee under £100,000 to minimize the publicity.   Under Nicholson, Spurs won another FA cup in 1967 and a second European trophy (the UEFA cup) in 1972, as well as the league cup in 1971 and 1973.  In all, during his sixteen years as Spurs manager, he won eight major trophies, before retiring in September 1974. Throughout this time he never signed a contract, and continued to live in the same modest semi-detached house, just ten minutes from the ground.   It is therefore doubly fitting that the little road off Tottenham High Road that leads to the main entrance to the club was renamed Bill Nicholson Way.   Paying tribute to him the legendary Dave Mackay, observed: 'Most of his criticisms revolved around his desire to see us play good football. That was what helped make playing for him so enjoyable. Bill is up there with the best managers.'