Alan Hudson left Arsenal in 1978 to be part of the NASL adventure. He had earlier been capped twice for England. He was one of the great players of English football during the 70’s. Many said England’s absence from the 1974 and 1978 World Cup’s was because this genius footballer was overlooked.
Hudson was banned from international football after refusing to tour with the England under-23 side. As a result, he did not make his England debut until 1975. His sparkling performances earned him two call-ups by then England manager Don Revie. He starred in the team that beat 1974 FIFA World Cup champions West Germany 2–0 at Wembley. Then, he excelled in the 5–0 destruction of Cyprus. However, injuries and clashes with Revie meant that those two caps were the only ones he earned. He was called up as a late replacement by Ron Greenwood in 1978 for a match against Brazil. Hudson refused to join up as he did not feel fit to play. He was not in the original squad.
He helped Arsenal reach the 1978 FA Cup Final. He played at Wembley Stadium in the final, which they lost 1–0 to Ipswich. He had fitness issues. There were personal differences with Arsenal manager Terry Neill. This meant he made only 36 appearances over his two seasons at Arsenal. He was then sold to Seattle Sounders of the NASL for £100,000. 27 years old when moving to Seattle.
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