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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
World
Seamus McDonnell

This house belonged to a legendary England World Cup winner - now it could be yours

The former home of an iconic footballer who was part of England's 1966 World Cup victory is up for sale.

Bolton's diminutive midfielder Alan Ball was the youngest member of the Three Lions squad at the tournament and was nominated by several teammates as man of the match in the famous 4-2 final victory against West Germany.

Now, the house where he was born in 1945 has gone on the market.

The two-bedroom semi-detached property on Brookhouse Avenue, Farnworth, will go under the hammer in an auction later this month.

The house has a front and rear garden, a driveway at the back of the building and a single garage.

It also features a blue plaque, which was placed on the front of the building in 2008 to commemorate Ball's careers and classic cup final performance.

The plaque was funded by the his former clubs, which include Blackpool, Everton, Arsenal, Southampton and Bristol Rovers.

The house is up with a guide price of £69,000. (Pugh Auctions)

Ball, a former Farnworth Grammar School pupil, had trials with Bolton Wanderers as a teenager but was rejected when coaches told him he was too small.

The blue plaque on the front of the building. (Pugh Auctions)

The 5ft 6in midfielder eventually began his career with Blackpool, before being transferred to Everton for a then British record fee of £110,000.

He won a league championship title with the Merseyside club in 1970 and collected 72 England caps during a 10-year international career. He later managed clubs including Southampton and Manchester City.

Ball was born in the house in 1945. (Pugh Auctions)

His former home will be up for sale as part of an online auction held on Wednesday, March 24, and has a guide price of £69,000.

Paul Thompson, managing director of auction house Pugh said: “It’s a privilege to be auctioning a property with such strong connections to a national and local legend.

"By all accounts Alan Ball was tremendously proud of his Bolton roots and continued to live in the area even when he was a professional.

“The blue plaque marks this otherwise ordinary-looking house out as a unique property that is part of England’s football history and whoever the highest bidder is at our auction this month will be the proud new owner of a very special house.

Registration for the auctions closes at 12pm on March, 22, and bidding opens on March, 23. To view the full catalogue, go to www.pugh-auctions.com.

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