During the days Tony Currie played his best football with Sheffield United and was given his England debut from Sir Alf Ramsey, Don Revie was mastering Leeds United in the top of English football.
Tony Currie did stand out as outstanding individual at Sheffield United and at the time the number one Yorkshire rival in the top of English football. Currie was in his early 20’s at the time and few of the youngsters at Leeds United had the same talent especially when it came to English midfielders.
Johnny Giles and Billy Bremner were the two running the engine room at Elland Road at the same time and they were coming to a certain age that did see their best years slowly being a passed affair.
Don Revie left Leeds United after the 1973/74 league winning season, Tony Currie ended 13th with Sheffield United, they were the only two Yorkshire teams in the top flight at the time, and with Tony Currie a member of the England set up.
He was the big star in his team at the time, but it was clear that Don Revie had other ideas. Tony Currie made his England debut in 1972, and at the time Revie took over the manager post he had six full caps. The 24 year old would be more or less overlooked totally by Revie who only picked him once, but when Ron Greenwood came in, he started to select Currie for his squad on a regular basis as he finished his tally on 17 caps all together playing his last full international game in 1979.
He was in an artcile once described as the right man at the right place but in the wrong time, but looking at his stats and the facts, Currie was so cl
Tony Currie made his expected move away from The Blades and moved to Elland Road for a fee of £250.000. He signed for Leeds United in 1976, a year after the club had been the defeated finalist of the European Cup. There were still lots of talent left at Elland Road and with Currie signing, hopes were high that titles again would retain.
But things at Elland Road didn’t really work out as the top club slided and ended 10th in Curries first season (1976/77). In the start of the season, Billy Bremner, the master and captain of the club for so many years, was given green light to join Hull City, and that loss and gap was not able to be filled by Currie alone. though results were not too bad under the current gaffer.
Leeds United never ended out of the top ten under Armfield’s time, reaching the semi-finals of both the FA Cup (1977) and League Cup (1978), but it was not like the “Good Old Days” and with Tony Currie it was Leeds United a level below, nearly men in the cups, and Tony instead made the final as captain with Queens Park Rangers a few years later.
Despite being a great player and one that you would believe could turn the tide for England, Don Revie instead used other options, with Tony Currie, just being told “you are not good enough”. Currie did make the squad a lot of times but as written above only played once, despite playing for Revie’s “old love” Leeds United. Instead players were played out of position with Brian Greenhoff and Trevor Cherry lining up together in midfield for that ever so important away World cup qualifier against Italy, which England lost 2-0 and no Tony Currie in the line-up.
Tony Currie was in the England team that only managed a 1-1 draw v. Poland in 1973, losing out on a spot in the 1974 World Cup finals, and despite playing a good game, never had the thrill of representing England in the World Cup.
Strangely you have those players who are expected to set the World on fire, but never does and you just see them as great men in their club teams, but history and time makes them unfairly missed from the biggest occasions.
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