Malcolm Allison was the best coach this country has ever had, says Mike Summerbee

Manchester City and Crystal Palace have led the tributes for Malcolm Allison after one of English football's more flamboyant characters from the 1960s and 70s, famed for his outspoken views and a love of fedoras, cigars and sheepskin coats, died at the age of 83. Allison will be remembered mostly for his time as Joe Mercer's assistant at City as they transformed a Second Division team into one of the more exciting sides in England, winning the league title in 1968, followed by the FA Cup in 1969, plus the League Cup and European Cup Winners' Cup in 1970. Allison was famed for his one-liners and once said City would be "the first team to play on Mars". The flags at the City of Manchester stadium were flying at half-mast today and a series of tributes are being planned to mark Allison's contribution to the most successful period in the club's history. City described him as "flamboyant, brilliant and larger than life", and many supporters are planning to wear fedoras at the Europa League tie at home to Lech Poznan next Thursday and the league game three days later against Arsenal. "Joe Mercer was the figurehead but Malcolm Allison was the key to the door," Mike Summerbee, one of City's key players in their trophy-winning years, said: "Malcolm changed football by making us train like athletes and in that respect, he was ahead of his time. He was one of the lads but he knew how to crack the whip and we all respected him. My wife always said that 'you love Malcolm Allison more than you love me'. That's how you epitomised Malcolm Allison. "It is sad to lose not only a great character, but one of the greatest coaches there has ever been in this country. He was the best coach this country has ever had, without a shadow of a doubt. He was a great coach, a very special person and a nice man as well." Bernard Halford, the former City secretary, had known Allison for over 40 years. "We will never see the likes of him ever again," he said. "He did so much for the club. He enhanced the careers of so many other players and they worshipped him. You always knew he was in the room. Not many people have that kind of presence but Malcolm did, and he transferred the confidence he had in himself to the team. He felt we could beat anybody and he wanted the players to think that way too." Allison went on to manage Crystal Palace on two separate occasions, his managerial career spanning 30 years in total, and also including spells at Plymouth Argyle (twice), Middlesbrough, Yeovil Town and Bristol Rovers. A statement from Selhurst Park said: "Allison will always be remembered at Palace for the 1975-76 season when, as a Third Division club, he led us on a fantastic FA Cup run that included wins against Leeds, Chelsea and Sunderland, and booked our place in the semi-finals for the first time in the club's history. "The Cup run ended at the semi-final stage with defeat against Southampton, but this period of the club's history will always remain one of the more memorable times for thousands of Palace supporters. He made a short return as manager in 1979-80 but the 1970s and his fedora will always be what Allison is remembered for at Selhurst Park." Allison, or 'Big Mal' as he was commonly known, spent most of his playing career at West Ham United, making over 200 appearances in defence before he suffered tuberculosis and had to have a lung removed, eventually forcing him out of the game. His managerial career was launched at Bath City in 1963 and over the next three decades he also had spells abroad, including with the Kuwait national team, Toronto City, Galatasaray and Sporting Lisbon, with whom he won the Portuguese title and domestic cup. His life in football was never far from controversy, Allison becoming a regular in the tabloids because of his relationships with, among others, Christine Keeler of the Profumo scandal and two Miss United Kingdom winners. In 1976 the Football Association charged him with disrepute because of a News of the World photograph showing him in the Crystal Palace players' bath with the risque actress Fiona Richmond, who he had invited to a training session. Terry Venables, a Palace player at the time, later said of the incident: "I was in the bath with all the players and we heard the whisper that she was coming down the corridor. We all leapt out and hid because we knew there'd be photos and that wouldn't go down too well. Malcolm and Fiona dropped everything and got in the bath." Howard Wilkinson, the chairman of the League Managers Association, said: "Malcolm was a legend. He was generous, humorous and a fantastic coach who lived life to the full and was inspirational to would-be coaches including myself and Terry Venables. He was a forward-thinker with a big personality who always had a smile on his face. I do not know anyone who did not like Malcolm and he will be truly missed."