Name: Alfred Ernest 'Alf' RamseyNickname: "The General"
Country:

England
Club:
Tottenham HotspurShirt Number: 2
Position: ★
CB,
SBSide: RF/RS
Age: 29-33 years (22/01/1920)
Height: 174 cm
Weight: 80 kg
Attack:
64Defence:
81Balance:
83Stamina:
82Top Speed:
75Acceleration:
72Response:
83Agility:
73Dribble Accuracy:
72Dribble Speed:
73Short Pass Accuracy:
82Short Pass Speed:
79Long Pass Accuracy:
81Long Pass Speed:
76Shot Accuracy:
68Shot Power:
82Shot Technique:
67Free Kick Accuracy:
73Curling:
76Header:
72Jump:
77Technique:
78Aggression:
68Mentality:
88Goalkeeper Skills:
50Team Work:
85Injury Tolerance:
BCondition:
6Weak Foot Accuracy:
6Weak Foot Frequency:
6Consistency:
7Growth type:
Late PeakCARDS:S01 – Passer
S04 – PK Taker
S07 – Man Marking
S08 – Slide Tackle
SPECIAL ABILITIES: Marking - Sliding - Passing - Penalties
Attack/Defence Awareness Card: Defence-Minded Alf Ramsey’s playing career was steady and respected rather than spectacular. He began in non-league football with Southampton-based sides before joining Southampton FC in 1943, where he established himself as a reliable right-back. After several seasons of consistent performances in the Second Division, he earned a move to Tottenham Hotspur in 1949. At Spurs, he became an integral part of the famous “Push and Run” side managed by Arthur Rowe, which won the Second Division title in 1949–50 and the First Division championship in 1950–51. Ramsey’s leadership qualities also stood out—he captained Tottenham and was trusted as a figure of authority both on and off the pitch. His form earned him 32 caps for England between 1948 and 1953, during which he was a regular starter at right-back, including in the 1950 World Cup in Brazil.
Alf Ramsey was celebrated as a tactically astute and measured right-back, less reliant on physical pace—as he was rather slow—and more on a profound ability to read the game, positioning himself intelligently to pre-empt danger and control space. His chief asset was his precise distribution: he excelled at both short and long-range passing and was integral to building play from the back rather than resorting to clearances. Within Arthur Rowe’s pioneering “push-and-run” system at Tottenham Hotspur, Ramsey’s calmness, short passing, and tactical brain made him a fulcrum of the team's fluid play. In league football for Spurs he scored 24 goals, with 17 from the penalty spot and 7 from open play—a striking return for a full-back of his era. The fact that he converted so many penalties underlines his composure, while his handful of open-play strikes (including a memorable solo effort against Grimsby Town in 1949) showed that he could occasionally step forward to make a difference.
Quote:
Almost uniquely in Britain, Spurs began building from the back, with Ramsey given licence to push on. ‘There is no limit to where even a defender will go to attack,’ he said. ‘Maybe you have noticed how often I go upfield to cross a ball or even have a shot at goal. That a defender should not attempt to score a goal is something to which I can never subscribe.’ He could only do that, though, because his centre-half, Bill Nicholson, as dour a player as he was a public speaker, was prepared to sit in and provide cover
Quote:
Marching On … Arthur Rowe expanded on the game he wanted Alf to play: ‘I put it to Alf Ramsey that while I knew he was brought up on using long, measured passes, these tended to leave him out of the action once he had played them. But had he ever thought how much more accuracy was guaranteed, how much more progress could be made if he pumped fifteen- or twenty-yard passes to a withdrawn [outside-right, Sonny] Walters. The opposing left-back would hesitate to follow Walters back into the Spurs half, which was definitely no man’s land to the full-back then, thus giving Walters the vital gift of space. And Sonny could now also make an inside pass if Alf followed up and made himself available. We had one more option: with Ramsey’s precision, once advanced, he could drive the ball down to the right for Les Bennett, coming to the near post, to turn the ball inside with his head.’
Quote:
Walter Winterbottom points out: ‘His great skill was his use of the ball. He could spot openings very quickly and play a long ball extremely accurately, but he was better known for the short ball which Tottenham were famous for. It was a passing game at Tottenham, using intelligence.’ For a record fee for a full-back, officially pegged at £21,000 – left-winger Ernie Jones moved in the opposite direction as makeweight – Alf was on the move.
Inverting the Pyramid_ The History of Football Tactics, by Jonathan Wilson
Winning Isn't Everything, by Dave Bowler
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alf_Ramseyhttps://www.worldfootball.net/alltime_goalgetter/eng-premier-league/elfmeter/tottenham-hotspur/https://youtu.be/uL0OLrksdAo?si=G_AznolYXl53IgUihttps://youtu.be/vQmzz_Os6rk?si=Z22-GIEAC8gxlMU9