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Matt Busby
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==Playing career== ===Club career=== Aged 18, Busby signed for Manchester City on a one-year contract worth Β£5 per week on 11 February 1928,<ref name="mre">{{cite book |last=Penney |first=Ian |title=The Maine Road Encyclopedia |publisher=Mainstream |location=Edinburgh |year=1995 |isbn=1-85158-710-1 |page=37 }}</ref> with the provision for him to leave at the end of the deal if he still wished to emigrate to the United States with his mother. He decided to stay and made his debut for City on 2 November 1929, more than 18 months after first signing for the Blues, when he played at [[inside forward|inside left]] in a 3β1 win at home to [[Middlesbrough F.C.|Middlesbrough]] in the First Division. He made 11 more appearances for City that season, all at inside forward, scoring five goals in the process. During the [[1930β31 in English football|1930β31 season]], City manager [[Peter Hodge]] decided that Busby's talents could be better exploited from the half-back line,<ref name="mre"/> with Busby playing the right-half role. In his new position, Busby built up a reputation as an intelligent player and a finer passer of the ball.<ref name="murphy_62-63">{{cite book |last=Murphy |first=Alex |title=The Official Illustrated History of Manchester United |publisher=Orion Books |year=2006 |location=London |isbn=0-7528-7603-1 |pages=62β63 }}</ref> In 1930, Manchester United made an enquiry about signing Busby from their cross-town rivals, but they were unable to afford the Β£150 fee that City demanded.<ref name="white_62">{{cite book |last=White |first=Jim |title=Manchester United: The Biography |year=2008 |publisher=Sphere |location=London |isbn=978-1-84744-088-4 |page=62 }}</ref> By the 1931β32 season, Busby was firmly established in the first team, missing just one match that season.<ref>{{cite book |last=James |first=Gary |title=Manchester City - The Complete Record |publisher=Breedon |location=Derby |year=2006 |isbn=1-85983-512-0 |page=341 }}</ref> Indeed, Busby and [[Jackie Bray]] became such fixtures at wing-half that club captain [[Jimmy McMullan]] had to move to forward to keep his place in the team.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ward |first=Andrew |title=The Manchester City Story |publisher=Breedon|location=Derby |year=1984 |isbn=0-907969-05-4 |page=32 }}</ref> In the 1930s Manchester City performed strongly in the [[FA Cup]]. They reached the semi-finals in 1932, and the final in [[1933 FA Cup Final|1933]] before finally winning the tournament in [[1934 FA Cup Final|1934]]. However, from the second half of the 1934β35 season, Busby's number 4 jersey was worn by [[Jack Percival (footballer, born 1913)|Jack Percival]] with increasing regularity, and Busby was sold to [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]] for [[Pound sterling|Β£]]8,000 on 12 March 1936, having made more than 200 appearances for Manchester City. He made his debut for the Reds just two days later, on 14 March, away to [[Huddersfield Town A.F.C.|Huddersfield Town]]; the match ended in a 1β0 Liverpool defeat. Busby opened his goalscoring account a month later β his 47th-minute strike helped his team to a 2β2 draw with [[Blackburn Rovers F.C.|Blackburn Rovers]] at [[Ewood Park]]. Busby soon made the number 4 shirt his own, ousting [[Ted Savage (footballer)|Ted Savage]] in the process. He rarely missed a game over the following three seasons. This consistency earned Busby the Liverpool [[captain (association football)|captaincy]] and he led the club with great distinction. Along with [[Jimmy McDougall (footballer)|Jimmy McDougall]] and [[Tom Bradshaw (footballer, born 1904)|Tom Bradshaw]], Busby made up what is considered by many to be the best half-back line Liverpool had ever had.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lfchistory.net/player_profile.asp?player_id=557 |title=Matt Busby |publisher=LFCHistory.net |access-date=24 October 2009 }}</ref> [[Bob Paisley]] joined Liverpool from Bishop Auckland in 1939, and it was Busby who took him under his wing and showed him the ropes at [[Anfield]]. This led to a lifelong friendship between two of the most successful managers in English football history. The [[World War II|Second World War]] arrived soon after, and with it came an end to Busby's playing days. Like many of the Liverpool playing staff, he signed on for national service in the [[King's Regiment (Liverpool)|King's Liverpool Regiment]]. === War years === Busby carried on playing football during the war. A few days after helping [[Aldershot F.C.|Aldershot]] defeat [[Chelsea F.C.|Chelsea]] 4β3 in a [[benefit match]], Busby signed for Chelsea on 28 October 1939. He made four appearances in total.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/2020/04/07/honoured-guests---part-two---the-story-of-chelsea-s-wartime-play | title=HONOURED GUESTS β PART TWO β THE STORY OF CHELSEA'S WARTIME PLAYERS | publisher=Chelsea FC | date=7 August 2020 | access-date=26 June 2021}}</ref> He also turned out for Middlesbrough (13 matches),<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/a-sign-of-evidence-3802968.amp | title=A Sign of Evidence | work=Gazette Live | date=23 March 2005 | access-date=3 July 2021}}</ref> [[Reading F.C.|Reading]], [[Brentford F.C.|Brentford]], and [[AFC Bournemouth|Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic]]. [[Hibernian F.C.|Hibernian]] lured Busby back north in 1941<ref name = "three kings">{{cite web | url=https://theedinburghreporter.co.uk/2020/11/the-hibs-connection-to-the-three-kings/ | title=The Hibs' connection to the 'Three Kings' | work=Edinburgh Reporter | date=18 November 2020 | access-date=26 June 2021}}</ref> at a time when English clubs did not want their players in [[Football in Scotland|Scottish football]] unless they were insured.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://playupliverpool.com/1941/06/25/matt-busby-for-hibernian/ | title=MATT BUSBY FOR HIBERNIAN? | newspaper=[[Dundee Evening Telegraph]] | publisher=PlayupLiverpool.com | date=25 June 1941 | access-date=26 June 2021}}</ref> He played in 37 matches for the club and scored five goals (including one against city rivals [[Heart of Midlothian F.C.|Hearts]]).<ref name = "three kings"/> Busby appeared in back-to-back [[Summer Cup (Scottish football)|Summer Cup]] finals against [[Rangers F.C.|Rangers]] with a 3β2 victory in the [[1940β41 in Scottish football|1941]] competition.<ref>[https://www.londonhearts.com/scores/images/1941/1941071202.htm 1940β41 Summer Cup Final], London Hearts Supporters Club. Retrieved 29 June 2021.</ref><ref>[https://www.londonhearts.com/scores/images/1942/1942070402.htm 1941β42 Summer Cup Final] London Hearts Supporters Club. Retrieved 29 June 2021.</ref> After returning to Liverpool, he was appointed assistant coach of the club in May 1944.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://playupliverpool.com/1994/01/20/alexander-matthew-busby-matt-busby-playupliverpool-com/ | title=Sir Alexander Matthew Busby, CBE, KCSG (Matt Busby) | publisher=PlayupLiverpool.com | access-date=26 June 2021}}</ref> While based in [[Catterick, North Yorkshire|Catterick]], he also starred for [[Portrack Shamrocks F.C.|Portrack Shamrocks]] in the 1945 Ellis Cup final as a war-time guest.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/sport/other-sport/amateur-sport/ellis-cup-helped-mould-wealth-3731738.amp | title=The Ellis Cup helped mould a wealth of local talent | work=Gazette Live | date=30 June 2008 | access-date=26 June 2021}}</ref> ===International career=== Busby made only one official international appearance for [[Scotland national football team|Scotland]]; he played in a 3β2 [[British Home Championship]] defeat to [[Wales national football team|Wales]] at [[Ninian Park]], [[Cardiff]], on 4 October 1933. Playing opposite Busby in the Welsh half-back line was his future assistant [[Jimmy Murphy (footballer)|Jimmy Murphy]]. Busby also made seven appearances for Scotland against [[England national football team|England]] during the Second World War, winning just one of them, but these are considered unofficial.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.londonhearts.com/SFL/players/mattbusby.html|title=Scotland player Matt Busby [including unofficial matches]|website=London Hearts Supporters' Club|access-date=26 May 2020}}</ref> He represented the [[Scottish League XI]] in an inter-league match in 1941, while he was a guest player of Hibernian.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.londonhearts.com/SFL/players/mattbusby.html|title=SFL player Matt Busby|website=London Hearts Supporters' Club|access-date=1 December 2011}}</ref><ref name=gh1941>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_T5AAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cVkMAAAAIBAJ&pg=1798%2C775716 Wins for England and Belgium], ''The Glasgow Herald'', 12 October 1941</ref>
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