Johnny MacLeod explained

Johnny MacLeod
Fullname:John Murdoch MacLeod[1]
Birth Date:23 November 1938
Birth Place:Edinburgh, Scotland
Position:Winger
Youthyears1:1954–1955
Youthyears2:1955–1957
Youthclubs2:Armadale Thistle
Years1:1957–1961
Years2:1961–1964
Years3:1964–1968
Years4:1968–1971
Years5:1971–1972
Years6:1972–1975
Clubs6:Newtongrange Star
Caps1:101
Caps2:130
Caps3:125
Caps4:116
Caps5:15
Goals1:28
Goals2:23
Goals3:16
Goals4:3
Goals5:5
Nationalyears1:1961–1962[2]
Nationalteam1:SFA trial v SFL
Nationalcaps1:2
Nationalgoals1:0
Nationalyears2:1961[3]
Nationalteam2:Scotland U23
Nationalcaps2:1
Nationalgoals2:0
Nationalyears3:1961[4]
Nationalteam3:Scottish League XI
Nationalcaps3:1
Nationalgoals3:0
Nationalyears4:1961
Nationalteam4:Scotland
Nationalcaps4:4
Nationalgoals4:0

John Murdoch MacLeod (born 23 November 1938) is a Scottish former footballer who played as a winger.

Career

Born in Edinburgh, MacLeod started his career at his local club, Hibernian, and played 85 times for the Edinburgh side between 1957 and 1961, where he made a name for himself as a talented right winger. He also earned four caps for Scotland, all in 1961. His debut was in an infamous 9–3 defeat at the hands of England and the last appearance was in a 4–0 defeat by Czechoslovakia in a 1962 FIFA World Cup qualification tie.

In July 1961 MacLeod was signed by Arsenal for £40,000 (then a record fee for a winger) and made his debut against Burnley on 19 August 1961. He became a regular for the next three seasons, playing over thirty games in each. In total, he made 112 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 27 goals, despite manager Billy Wright's policy of usually employing only one winger on the pitch. Arsenal were not particularly successful at this time, usually finishing around mid-table, although they did make their European debut, in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, in 1963–64. MacLeod scored the opening goal in Arsenal's very first European match, a 7–1 thrashing of Stævnet on 25 September 1963.[5]

In September 1964, with the young George Armstrong pushing for a place in the side, Arsenal found MacLeod surplus to requirements and sold him to Aston Villa for £35,000. He spent four seasons at Villa Park making 123 league appearances, before moving to Belgium to play for KV Mechelen in 1968. In 1971, he returned to his native Scotland to see out his career at Raith Rovers. He retired from playing in 1972.

References

Notes and References

  1. http://www.londonhearts.com/scotland/players/johnmurdochmacleod.html John MacLeod
  2. Book: Scotland in the 60s: The Definitive Account of the Scottish National Football Side During the 1960s. Ronnie McDevitt. 2016. Pitch Publishing. 9781785312458.
  3. http://www.fitbastats.com/scotlandu23/player.php?playerid=77 Scotland U23 player McLeod, Johnny
  4. https://www.londonhearts.com/SFL/players/johnnymcleod.html Johnny McLeod
  5. http://sport.scotsman.com/sport/Armadale-winger-hit--Arsenal39s.5214784.jp Armadale winger hit Arsenal's first goal in Europe