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Arsenal Media 31 Oct 2025

Everyone at the club is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former defender Willie Young, aged 73.

The Scottish under-23 international joined us in March 1977, becoming a rare signing from across north London when he arrived from Tottenham Hotspur. He actually followed his manager, Terry Neill, down the Seven Sisters Road, Neill knowing that the giant Scotsman could bring some much-needed steel to an Arsenal team struggling to make the transition from the all-conquering side at the start of the decade. A comical moment at his signing, when the club couldn’t find a shirt big enough to fit the 6’3” Willie, was an indication that Neill knew his team required a rugged edge to turn around a period of decline.  Willie was as strong a character off the pitch as he was on it – and he needed to be to make the move across the capital, with the Highbury faithful having significant reason for scepticism: “I was sent off against them after scoring my only First Division goal for...