Forest pay tribute to legend Larry Lloyd as ex-England and Liverpool star dies

Nottingham Forest legend Larry Lloyd has passed away at the age of 75.

Lloyd starred for Liverpool for five years from 1969 to 1974 before signing for Nottingham Forest in 1976 and winning two European Cups in a row.

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The ex-England star was a part of the legendary Forest team that beat the odds to claim consecutive European Cups in 1979 and 1980 under Brian Clough.

Forest paid tribute to their heroic defender, writing: "We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Larry Lloyd.

"Part of the Miracle Men, Larry was an integral player in the Forest side that memorably won back-to-back European Cups in 1979 and 1980, making 218 appearances for the club in total.

"We send our condolences to Larry’s friends and family at this truly sad time.

"Rest in peace, Larry."

Lloyd played for his boyhood club Bristol Rovers for two years before being snapped up by Liverpool in 1969, winning a league and UEFA Cup double in 1973.

After Bill Shankly quit, the defender also left Anfield to join Coventry but departed after two years with the club in financial problems.

Nottingham Forest swooped in for Lloyd under the advice of Peter Taylor, who told Clough that he would be pivotal to the club as they chased promotion from the second tier.

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And that is exactly what happened as Forest defied the odds to win the league title straight after landing promotion to the top tier, beating Lloyd's former side Liverpool to the prize in 1978.

They also won the League Cup that year before going on to retain that trophy and win the European Cup in the process.

Forest won the European Cup again the following year with Lloyd starring at the back to forge himself into club folklore at the City Ground.

Speaking on the Simon & Jordan Show on talkSPORT, John McGovern played with Lloyd at Forest and was on air when the news broke.

He paid tribute to his old pal, saying: "I was a teammate of Larry's. In fact, the year we won promotion at Nottingham Forest, I played alongside him at centre-half.

"He was obviously a centre-half and I was a midfield player. We had some bad injuries so I was filling in alongside him.

"We had some good chats, Larry and myself about how to defend. But he was one of a great side and he was a great character as well."