Laurie Cunningham: West Brom's trail blazer from the Baggies to the Bernabeu
When Jude Bellingham joins Spanish giants Real Madrid this summer, he also becomes part of a select band of players.
The club’s stellar signings includes the likes of David Beckham, Michael Owen and Gareth Bale from these isles.
But it was almost 45 years ago when the first player blazed a trail from England to Los Blancos, and like Bellingham, he made the trip from the West Midlands to the Bernabeu, albeit not via Germany.
Albion’s dazzling and dancing winger Laurie Cunningham was the first Englishman to swap these shores for the bright lights and glamour of Real Madrid, making the move back in 1979.
His story is a fascinating one, from London to Madrid via Albion, and one that ended tragically and prematurely.
The flying winger was raised in London to Jamaican parents, and from early age showed a love for not just football, but also dancing.
His displays in junior football saw Arsenal hand him a schoolboy contract, but after two years he was deemed, ‘not the right material’.
Leyton Orient would pick up Cunningham and he would go on to be remembered for decades to come, for his displays both on and off the pitch.
Such was his impact on the field at Orient, a statue of him was unveiled in a park near Brisbane Road, back in 2017.
