Paul Madeley

Paul Edward Madeley (20 September 1944 – 23 July 2018) was an English footballer who turned out for Leeds United and the England national side. His ability to slot into nearly any role on the pitch earned him the label of a utility player. Over his Leeds career, he racked up more than 500 league appearances and won 24 England caps between 1971 and 1977.

Born in the Beeston area of Leeds, Madeley joined the club from non-league Farsley Celtic in May 1962. He made his first-team debut in January 1964, stepping in after injuries to Freddie Goodwin and Jack Charlton, and became a regular from 1966 onward.

Madeley’s versatility was remarkable: during his time at Leeds, he played every outfield position and wore every shirt number from 2 to 11, plus occasionally 12. Because he could adapt so readily, manager Don Revie often picked him ahead of a specialist, usually when someone else was injured or suspended—most often in defence. Yet Madeley also featured in attack when Leeds claimed their first major honours. In the 1968 League Cup final, he wore the No. 9 shirt as a striker in a 1-0 win over Arsenal; in 1971, he scored the decisive away goal against Juventus in the Fairs Cup, wearing the No. 11 shirt. This flexibility gave rise to his nickname “The Eleven Pauls,” used in the 1972 FA Cup final song.

After deputising so well for Paul Reaney at club level, Alf Ramsey asked Madeley to replace Reaney in England’s squad for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. Madeley politely declined, saying he needed a rest and, as a stand-in, probably wouldn’t get a game. In the 1971-72 season, he shifted positions again due to injuries and suspensions, playing every league match—though Leeds missed out on the title on the final day for the third year running. In April 1972, left-back Terry Cooper broke his leg, so Madeley took the No. 3 shirt for the season’s end and the FA Cup final, which Leeds won 1-0 against Arsenal.

Revie signed Trevor Cherry as Cooper’s replacement in summer 1972, and Madeley moved to centre-back for much of the next season as Jack Charlton’s career wound down. He wore No. 5 in the FA Cup final loss to Sunderland and the European Cup Winners Cup final defeat to AC Milan. Leeds won the League in 1974, with Madeley missing only three matches, and after Revie left for the England job, they reached their first European Cup final in 1975, with Madeley again in the No. 5 shirt.

In his autobiography, Revie’s successor Jimmy Armfield recalled Madeley negotiating a new contract: “He once actually signed a new contract on what was virtually a blank piece of paper. I called him in to discuss terms and opened discussions by saying, ‘OK, Paul, we’ll give you so much.’ He replied that he had no intention of leaving Leeds so he might as well sign the contract and let me fill in the details. I said, ‘What do you want, then, two years or three years?’ He answered, ‘Either way, I’ll leave it to you. I just want to play for Leeds,’ and that was that.” Madeley was granted a testimonial season in 1977 and retired in 1980 with 724 appearances in all competitions.

Madeley made his England debut in 1971 against Northern Ireland in Belfast, playing right-back—a position where he earned most of his 24 caps over six years. Alf Ramsey had earlier asked him to replace injured Leeds teammate Paul Reaney for the 1970 World Cup, but Madeley declined. He later partnered Bobby Moore at centre-back for Moore’s 100th cap against Scotland in 1973. His final cap came against the Netherlands in a 1977 friendly at Wembley.

After retiring, Madeley invested in a sports goods shop in Leeds and worked for his family’s DIY business, which he and his brothers sold for £27 million in 1987. He had a benign brain tumour removed in 1992, a mild heart attack in 2002, and was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2004. Actor Chris Moore portrayed him in the 2009 film The Damned United. Madeley died on 23 July 2018, aged 73.