Celtic fans have been paying tribute to Dundee United legend Jim McLean after the club announced he passed away at the age of 83.
McLean was a titan of Scottish football, building a legendary United side at Tannadice that took on some of European football’s best teams, and won.
Celtic were not immune to that, with the Arabs famously winning the Scottish league title in 1983 after challenges from Aberdeen and the Bhoys.
United would then go on to reach the semi-finals of the European Cup and the final of the UEFA Cup in the 1980s, transforming Scottish football.
The Tayside outfit were the only club he would manage throughout his long career, in the dugout between 1971 and 1993 and remaining as chairman until 2000.
The McLean family said in a statement: “Jim was a much loved husband, father, brother, uncle and father-in-law, and we will all sadly miss him.
“His remarkable six decade career made him a true legend not only at Dundee United, but across the world of football.
“Jim’s achievements in leading Dundee United to the Scottish Premier League title in 1983 and to the semi-final of the following season’s European Cup are unlikely ever to be repeated.
“This is a very sad day for our family, but we will be eternally proud of Jim. We would ask that our privacy is respected at this very difficult time for our family.”
In total, he won three trophies with his club as manager, and was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame in 2005.
McLean was a football man who won the respect of his opponents, almost as much as his own supporters.
No surprise then that Celtic fans have been taking to social media to pay their own tributes to a Scottish football icon…
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