13 November 2023 , 13:40
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Thousands of people have lined the streets of Manchester to honour the life of the great Sir Bobby Charlton, while the great and good of football arrived at Manchester cathedral for his funeral.
The former United striker, who was revered at Old Trafford as a player and also won the 1966 World Cup with England, died last month at the age of 86. And the esteem with which he was held by fans of his former club was evident with huge crowds gathering outside the stadium hours before the funeral cortège was due to arrive.
Many fans wore club colours and scarfs, while others held up flags with poignant messages. The windows above the entrance to Old Trafford has also had special wording inserted, that read: 'SIR BOBBY CHARLTON. 1937-2023. FOREVER LOVED'.
Sir Alex Ferguson arrives at the funeral of Sir Bobby Charlton (Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)And the walls around the stadium currently play home to a number of poignant images. One picture has Charlton, who played 758 times for the Red Devils between 1962 and 1976 and scored 249 goals, in the middle of fellow club legends George Best and Denis Law.
A number of other images showcase his playing days at Old Trafford, as well as his later work when serving on the club board. And as well as celebrations from the 1968 final, in one picture he is proudly holding the Champions League trophy United dramatically won in 1999.
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Former Manchester United and England star Paul Scholes (KIERAN / SplashNews.com)
Ex-United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel arrives to pay his respects (KIERAN / SplashNews.com)The funeral service itself is taking place at Manchester Cathedral at 2pm, with more than 1,000 guests expected to attend. They include Sir Alex Ferguson and surviving members of Matt Busby's 1968 European Cup-winning team.
Also present are England manager Gareth Southgate and a clutch of former Red Devils stars including Steve Bruce, Paul Scholes, Andy Cole and Bryan Robson.
Outside Old Trafford, the cortège is scheduled to pass through a guard of honour made up of representatives of United’s Under-18 and Under-21 Academy teams, before proceeding to the Cathedral. Members of the current first team squad have also gathered to attend. A private wake is then scheduled to take place at Old Trafford after the ceremony.
England manager Gareth Southgate attends the funeral of Sir Bobby Charlton (AP)On October 24, three days after the death of Charlton, a minute's silence was held at Old Trafford ahead of United's Champions League game with Copenhagen. Manager Erik ten Hag also laid a wreath on the centre circle before kick-off.
And Ferguson himself has since paid personal tribute to his former mentor, saying: "People loved him because of all those thunderbolt goals but it was more than that. My dad used to say that humility in success is a sign of greatness, and that was Bobby. He never used to boast about his own achievements; it was always about the team and the club."
Fans battled the elements to pay their respects to Sir Bobby, with a bitterly cold wind sweeping through the streets of Manchester.
Fans pack outside Old Trafford (Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror)Colin Marsden, 67, bought the white cotton coat in the 70s and decorated it with 60 badges collected from every game he attended at Old Trafford as a season ticket holder.
He said: "I used to bring them home after every match and ask my sister to sew them on."
Another couple had taken the day off work for the occasion. Arthur, 59, and Angela Wilson, 72, had travelled from Knutsford in nearby Cheshire to say goodbye to Sir Bobby.
The hearse carrying the coffin of Sir Bobby Charlton passes Old Trafford (PA)Arthur said: "He was one of the originals, the last Busby Babe. It's a sad day but hopefully he's having a kickabout up there now with them. We're saying goodbye to a true legend."
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Angela added: "He was just a lovely lovely man, very grounded and not like footballers today. He was just a normal man."