1966–67 Stoke City F.C. season within the next twelve months. In the summer of 1966 Waddington secured the services of former Newcastle United winger George Eastham from Arsenal for £35,000. The other was goalkeeper Gordon Banks who was snapped up for a bargain £52,000 from Leicester City in April 1967. Matt Gillies, the Leicester manager was coming under considerable pressure to play his young reserve Peter Shilton and decided to sell the 29-year-old Banks to Stoke. It is widely considered that this was a 'steal' as Banks carried on to play for England for another five years. Banks left English football in 1972 and ironically
Leicester City F.C. Under-23s and Academy the likes of Manchester United or West Ham United's youth systems, the Leicester City Academy has been one of the more productive academies in the East Midlands. England internationals Peter Shilton, Gary Lineker, David Nish, Steve Whitworth and Emile Heskey, as well as Don Revie, who played for and managed England all began their careers with the "Foxes". Frank McLintock, a Scottish international, former footballer of the year and a double winning captain with Arsenal, who was described by Bob Paisley as the "player of the decade" at the end of the 1970s also came through the "Foxes"' ranks. Leicester's