Happy birthday Greavsie - 80 today!

Happy birthday to one of our all-time greats Jimmy Greaves, who turns 80 today.

Born in east London on 20 February, 1940, 'Greavsie' joined us from AC Milan in December, 1961.

He bagged a hat-trick on his debut against Blackpool at White Hart Lane on 16 December, 1961, and went on to score 266 goals in 379 appearances in all competitions until moving to West Ham in March, 1970.

A goalscorer like no other in the British game, famed for his calmness in front of goal, Jimmy lifted the FA Cup at the end of that first season - he scored in the final at Wembley - and helped Bill Nicholson's 'glory, glory' team conquer Europe with our Cup Winners' Cup triumph in 1963, the first British team to win a European trophy. Naturally, he scored twice in the final against Atletico Madrid in Rotterdam. His third and final trophy at Spurs was another FA Cup in 1967.

He is still the highest all-time goalscorer in the top flight of English football (Division One/Premier League) with 357 league goals in 516 games for Chelsea, Spurs and West Ham.

Jimmy also won 57 caps for England between 1959-1967, scoring 44 goals, placing him fourth in the Three Lions' all-time goalscoring list. He was a member of the triumphant World Cup squad in 1966 but missed out on the final after picking up an injury in the final group game against France.

Football is only half of the story. Jimmy retired at the end of the 1970/71 season and lost without football, spent much of the 1970s battling alcoholism, but having got himself sober, he got a newspaper column with The Sun and wrote a book with friend Norman Giller called This One’s on Me. His searingly honest documentary Just For Today, based on This One’s On Me, propelled him back into the public spotlight with a wave of support.

After spells on ATV in the Midlands and on the panel for the 1982 World Cup, ITV executives paired Jimmy up with former Liverpool footballer Ian St John - Saint and Greavsie was born. It was a colossal hit, awards were won and Greavsie was a major public figure again.

Sadly, Jimmy suffered a severe stroke in 2015. He survived, but is now wheelchair-bound. He paid an emotional visit to the Lane in March, 2017, and was a special guest at Hotspur Way in October, 2017, when he met Harry Kane.

Jimmy is also the subject of a new documentary, Greavsie, the latest in the acclaimed BT Sport Films series, which premiered on BT Sport earlier this week. It will be shown again at 7.30pm on Saturday.

We celebrated Jimmy's career with a special-edition programme for our Champions League Round of 16, first leg against RB Leipzig on Wednesday night. Ahead of kick-off, Harry Kane presented a signed shirt to Jimmy's son Danny and granddaughter, Hannah.