Top Tweets for #RIPGaryShaw

Gary Shaw – a tribute. Shaw, who has passed away aged 63, played the game the way it should be played. The Aston Villa attacker played with flair, an unquenchable hunger for goals, commitment to team and loyalty to club. He played to win, conquering England in 1981 and Europe in 1982, and he did it in style. Shaw’s finishing was not only about the quantity, 79 goals in 213 games for the Villa, but also the quality. Shaw was fleet of mind and body, able to sense the best positions to glide into, whether holding his run to the edge of the area for a cutback and strike with either foot or darting to the near-post for a poacher’s finish with head or foot. He could stun a ball speeding in, flick it up, juggle it and volley it in, all under pressure from a merciless centre-half and on pitches that sometimes looked more suited to ploughing than pillaging goals. And he scored vital goals. It feels like only yesterday, rather than 42 years ago, that Shaw was dribbling through Dinamo Kyiv’s defence and scoring with a low left-footed shot from the tightest of angles at Villa Park in 1982. It was not only a brilliant strike but hugely significant in Villa’s run to European glory. So many fine finishes: running on to Dennis Mortimer’s through pass and driving the ball through Jim Platt’s legs at Middlesbrough in 1980; and gambling on a David Geddis flicked shot coming back off the post, falling to his right, connecting with his left in 1980 at Villa Park in the 3-0 Derby win over Blues – that athleticism and positioning again. Shaw could link and create and finish, famously against Nottingham Forest in 1981, dropping deep and taking the ball from Morley, loaning it to Geddis, then giving it to Mortimer in the centre-circle and ghosting into the area. Kenny Swain, released by Mortimer, crossed low and hard from the right, Shaw timed his run to perfection, meeting it first time. A bad knee injury in 1983 lessened his impact but his mind was still sharp, taking him into the right positions. When Paul Rideout nodded down against West Brom in 1984, Shaw pounced. For Villa fans, he was “one of our own”. For the rest of us admiring from afar, Shaw was a Boy’s Own hero, prolific and photogenic, the PFA Young Player of the Year, then European Young Footballer of the Year. Shaw would be worth a fortune in the modern era. His versatility would be highly prized. He could play as a second striker, centre-forward, even wide. His partnership with Peter Withe was the proverbial rapier and broadsword, silk and steel. They cut a swathe through opposition defences. The photo of Shaw and Withe holding the 1982 European Cup above Morley and placing it on his head remains an iconic image and embodied Villa’s attacking approach. That year, Shaw made the 40-strong long-list for the World Cup but was eventually overlooked by Ron Greenwood. He ended up with just Under-21 caps, and only seven of them, crazy really, given his calibre. Shaw’s impact felt even more uplifting because it was a counterpoint to the mood of the country at the time. With the dark clouds of unemployment, strikes and bombs in London parks scurrying across the landscape, a glamourous footballer who scored fabulous goals brought hope as well as joy. Villa have lost a legend and English football has lost a player who lit up the 80s. His family have lost someone very special. Shaw was a very likeable and down-to-earth human being even to those of us who only encountered him briefly in the Villa Park press room. Just a really approachable guy. My thoughts with Gary Shaw’s family, friends and former team-mates. RIP.

Aston Villa Football Club is deeply shocked and profoundly saddened to learn that Gary Shaw, one of our European Cup-winning heroes, has passed away. Gary was one of our own, a talented striker who delighted supporters with his goalscoring exploits which helped fire Villa to success in the 1980s. Individual accolades would also follow for a player who was idolised by many on the terraces. He passed away peacefully earlier today surrounded by his family, who asked Aston Villa to release a statement on their behalf. The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Gary’s family and loved ones at this extremely difficult time.

Dear Gaz I wanted to play football because of you. I love Villa because of you. When I was 11 I asked my Mom if I could have a blonde wedge because of you( 😂). Her wry "I don't think we can do that, Son" will stay with me as one of my abiding memories of her, too. You were a real life superhero. "🎶When he gets the ball he's bound to score🎶!!" I'd sing at home, in the the Holte, whenever you were on telly. At junior school our school team wore black and white stripes, no numbers on the back, just a little printed red number on the sleeve. The first time I got "called up" there was only one number I wanted. 8. Because of you. I wish I'd have done more over the years to befriend you, you know. I so wish I'd have been able to elaborate why you were and are so special and to tell you that so much more often than I did. It's hard to put into words how grateful I am to have latched onto the magic you gave. That kit, those goals, that partnership, that team, those 2 magical seasons. Champions of England. Champions of Europe. With you front and centre. Living the dream of Villa fans everywhere, what a feeling, what a ride! I saw you last, fittingly at Villa Park, and finally after 40 years, you signed my shirt which I'll cherish. To Gary's family, friends and Class of 82', the love, gratitude and thanks from my family to you is from the bottom of our heart. And to you, ledge, thank you. You made a little boy dream big, fall in love with you, our club and the beautiful game. You were my hero on the pitch but most importantly my hero off it. The loveliest of men. Rest in peace, ledge. All of my heroes are Villans.