Jeff Whitefoot dies: Former Manchester United player and original Busby Babe | UK news

Former Manchester United player Jeff Whitefoot has died aged 90.

Whitefoot were one of the original Busby Babes, a team that stormed the First Division in the 1950s and were known for their youth and exciting brand of football under legendary manager Sir Matt Busby.

He left for Second Division club Grimsby three months before the Munich air disaster that killed eight of his Busby Babes teammates in 1958.

Whitefoot won the First Division title twice under Sir Matt Busby, in 1952 and 1956, before enjoying FA Cup success with Nottingham Forest in 1959.

The England under-23 midfielder became United’s youngest league debutant when given the opportunity, aged 16 years and 105 days, in April 1950.

He made 285 appearances for Forest before retiring in 1967.

Later he ran a tavern and then a pub.

A statement from United said: “There were few more perceptive and accurate passers of a football in England than Jeff in the mid-1950s.

“May he rest in peace, with a special place in the club’s folklore long secured.”

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Forest said in a statement: “Everyone at Nottingham Forest is deeply saddened to learn of the death of Jeff Whitefoot, aged 90.

“Jeff spent nine years at The City Ground between 1958 and 1967 and was the last surviving member of the team that lifted the famous FA Cup in 1959.”