CELTIC boss Brendan Rodgers praised the the inspiration of the Lisbon Lions as he paid his tribute to Tommy Gemmell.
The legendary left-back passes away at a Glasgow care facility in the early hours of Thursday morning at the age of 73.
It was Gemmell who netted the memorable equaliser as the Hoops became the first British club to conquer Europe in the Portuguese capital on May 25 1967.
He also scored in the 1970 European Cup Final, but on this occasion Jock Stein’s team lost 2-1 in extra-time in Milan.
Rodgers said: “We had come off a win and a good performance the night before after beating Inverness Caley Thistle 4-0 and to wake to the news that Tommy, such a legend at the club and an iconic player, had passed away, for all Celtic supporters worldwide, it was a shock and obviously really sad.”It was the greatest team and will always be the greatest team that represented Celtic.
“In 1967 they won the European Cup, the first British team to do that and went on to play in the 1970 Final and lost that, but Tommy, as a full-back, scored in both those games.
“These guys are revered around the club, but, not only that, they have lived their lives as Lisbon Lions, devoted their lives virtually to Celtic.
“They are tremendous ambassadors and I have one here on a daily basis, John Clark, who was a kit man here and worked within the kit department for a number of years and it is the humility about these guys.
“Real top fellas, top professional players in their day, but have lived a really humble life and it is very inspiring for someone who works at the club.”
