Peter Bonetti earned the nickname 'The Cat' because of his agility as a goalkeeper and widespread admiration for his loyalty to Chelsea.
Born in Putney on September 27, 1941, Bonetti was a local boy who represented the Blues for almost two decades at Stamford Bridge.
Bonetti, who has died at the age of 78, made 729 appearances for the club, keeping 208 clean sheets.
He was renowned for his reflexes, as well as his ability to throw the ball long distances with accuracy.
He pioneered the all-green goalkeeper kit, the catching of crosses and acknowledged the crowd before every game.
Bonetti enjoyed a remarkable playing career – and later briefly became a postman in Scotland's Western Isles –but it might have been even greater.
Forty-three years after being in England's 1966 World Cup-winning squad, Bonetti received his winners' medal after a campaign by the Football Association to recognise the non-playing members of the squad.
He was back-up to Gordon Banks for England's finest moment and won seven caps.
He conceded one goal in his first six appearances – five of them were friendlies – before deputising for Banks in a World Cup quarter-final with West Germany at the 1970 finals.
Banks fell ill on the eve of the match – conspiracy theories abounded – and a late decision was made to start with Bonetti, giving him little more than an hour to prepare.
England threw away a 2-0 lead and went on to lose 3-2 after extra-time. Bonetti was culpable for the first German goal scored by Franz Beckenbauer and held responsible for Uwe Seeler's backward header, which levelled the scores. He did not play for England again.
Bonetti is best remembered for his two spells at Stamford Bridge, from 1960 to 1975 and 1977 to 1979.
Twice Bonetti helped Chelsea to return to the First Division by winning promotion from the second tier.
He also won the 1965 League Cup, 1970 FA Cup and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1971.
Bonetti was limping heavily following an early foul in the bad-tempered 1970 FA Cup final replay with Leeds but he did not allow the injury to detract from an outstanding display as Chelsea won 2-1.
A year later, Bonetti was again in fine form in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final victory over Real Madrid, which they also won 2-1 in a replay.
His long-time team-mates included Ron Harris and Bobby Tambling. Only Harris has made more appearances for Chelsea, with 795.
Bonetti's own clean sheet record was only surpassed in January 2014 by Petr Cech.
Bonetti made his Chelsea debut as an 18-year-old, keeping a clean sheet in his first game in March 1960.
He continued to frustrate opposition players until his retirement after 18 seasons in Chelsea's first team.
There was a brief stint with St Louis Stars in the United States, which included finishing second to Pele as the North American Soccer League player of the year in 1976.
But the lure of Stamford Bridge saw him return to London and play into his late 30s.
Bonetti also had brief spells with Dundee United, playing five games in 1979, and Woking, playing twice in 1986.
He ran a guesthouse on the Isle of Mull after his retirement and worked as a postman.
He later became a specialist goalkeeping coach at Chelsea and, under Kevin Keegan's management, with Newcastle, Fulham, Manchester City and England.
Bonetti had a son, Scott, with his second wife, Kay. He also had four children with his first wife Frances, daughters Kim, Lisa and Suzanne and son Nicholas.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company%20profile
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How they line up for Sunday's Australian Grand Prix
1 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
2 Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari
3 Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari
4 Max Verstappen, Red Bull
5 Kevin Magnussen, Haas
6 Romain Grosjean, Haas
7 Nico Hulkenberg, Renault
*8 Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull
9 Carlos Sainz, Renault
10 Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes
11 Fernando Alonso, McLaren
12 Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren
13 Sergio Perez, Force India
14 Lance Stroll, Williams
15 Esteban Ocon, Force India
16 Brendon Hartley, Toro Rosso
17 Marcus Ericsson, Sauber
18 Charles Leclerc, Sauber
19 Sergey Sirotkin, Williams
20 Pierre Gasly, Toro Rosso
* Daniel Ricciardo qualified fifth but had a three-place grid penalty for speeding in red flag conditions during practice
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
Sly%20Cooper%20and%20the%20Thievius%20Raccoonus
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sucker%20Punch%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sony%20Computer%20Entertainment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%202%20to%205%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
Switching%20sides
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
more from Janine di Giovanni
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
