
Former
Tottenham, Chelsea, West Ham and England forward Jimmy Greaves, who suffered
a stroke at the beginning of May, has left hospital and gone into a
rehabilitation unit.
Greaves' friend and agent Terry Baker posted a statement on social media
revealing that the 75-year-old would be in rehab for a few weeks but his
condition had improved considerably.
The statement said: "Jimmy has left hospital and entered a rehabilitation
unit for the next few weeks. He has improved considerably but there is still
a very long way to go.
"We are still getting lots of people asking how he is on a daily basis.
"Famous friends and fans alike have all been fantastic. Jim wants me to
thank everyone for their concern and the love you have all shown him and I'm
sure you will all continue to do so. Thanks everyone."
Greaves scored 266 goals in 379 matches for Spurs, with whom he collected
two FA Cup winners' medals in 1962 and 1967. He was also part of their side
that lifted the European Cup-Winners’ Cup in 1963.
During his international career he scored 44 goals in 57 appearances and was
part of the England squad which won the World Cup on home soil in 1966.
Greaves missed out on a place in the final though as Sir Geoff Hurst
replaced him in England's starting line-up after the free-scoring forward
suffered a shin injury in the group match against France.
Hurst kept his place in the team until the decider, where he famously scored
a hat-trick in the 4-2 win over West Germany.
At the time, only the starting 11 received winners' medals but Greaves was
finally awarded one, alongside the rest of Sir Alf Ramsey's squad, in 2009
after a change to FIFA rules.
Greaves started as a teenager with Chelsea, before moving to Italy to play
for Milan. He ended his top-flight career at West Ham in the early 1970s.
After retiring from the game, Greaves co-hosted the popular Saturday
lunchtime football show Saint and Greavsie alongside ex-Liverpool forward
Ian St John.