Former Liverpool captain Ron Yeats, who helped the club win two Premier League titles, has died aged 86, the club announced on Saturday.
Yeats, a Scottish defender, was captain when Liverpool won the Second Division in 1962. The club have never been relegated since, and Yeats and his team-mates won the English Premier League in 1964 and 1966 under the club’s iconic manager Bill Shankly.
He was also the club’s first captain to win the FA Cup, when they lifted the trophy in 1965.
Shankly once described Yeats as a “colossus” and chose him to captain the club for eight seasons, totalling over 400 games during that time, a total surpassed only by Steven Gerrard.
Yeats left Liverpool in 1971, although he returned to the club as chief scout in 1986, a role he held until 2006.
He was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in January.
Liverpool said in a statement: “The thoughts of everyone at LFC are with Ron’s wife Ann and all his family and friends at this incredibly sad time.
“Flags at club sites will be flown at half-mast today as a mark of respect.”
Reuters information contributed to this report.
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