Former Celtic, Motherwell and Hibernian striker Joe McBride has died, aged 74.
McBride, who played for the Hoops between June 1965 and November 1968,
passed away at Glasgow Royal Infirmary on Wednesday night having
suffered a suspected stroke at the weekend, Celtic confirmed on Thursday
morning.
He suffered a mid-season injury which ruled him out of Celtic's 1967
European Cup triumph over Inter Milan in Lisbon, having already scored
35 goals in 26 games during the campaign.
Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell paid tribute to McBride, who had also worked as an ambassador for the club.
"The passing of Joe McBride is tragic news," he told celticfc.net. "Joe
was a very fine man, an absolute gentleman and someone who gave
tremendous service to the club over a number of years.
"It was a privilege to know Joe and it was fantastic that someone who
gave so much to Celtic was still involved with the club in a number of
ways - he will truly be sadly missed by everyone at Celtic. The thoughts
of everyone at the club are very much with Joe's family at this very
difficult time."
The Scotland international had a formidable strike rate during his
career, especially whilst at Celtic, where his goalscoring exploits rank
amongst the best in the club's illustrious history. McBride started his
career with Kilmarnock before an unsuccessful time in England led to
him moving to Partick and Motherwell and then on to Celtic.
Great success followed as he won two league championships and a couple
of League Cups with the Hoops, scoring 86 goals in 94 games for the
club. Former team-mate Tommy Gemmell also paid his respects to the
prolific frontman.
"This has come as a terrible shock," he told The Sun. "Joe was a great
lad and we had some wonderful moments together. It was easy to see why
the Celtic supporters took to him. He was one of their own and a real
man's man in the dressing room and out on the pitch.
Current Celtic boss Neil Lennon also offered the sympathies of everyone
at the club. He said: "The loss of Joe is terrible news. It was a
pleasure to be in Joe's company and on a personal level, Joe was someone
who was always very supportive to myself."