Eleven years ago today former football manager Brian Clough passed away. Undemonstrative, modest, ambassadorial, understated and quiet are none of the words that have ever used to describe the outspoken Middlesbrough born Clough.

A prolific goalscorer for his hometown club Middlesbrough (Boro) and Sunderland during his playing days, his career was prematurely ended in 1962, aged 27, when he sustained a cruciate ligament injury after a Boxing Day collision with the Bury goalkeeper.

He was affectionately known in the football world as Cloughie, which was a nickname thought up by a Boro team mate who cleverly added the letters ‘ie’ to his surname. Footballers were so impressed by the nickname, it was adopted throughout the game as a template for standard nicknaming protocol.

The only exception was ex-Chelsea player David Speedie who was just named David by his team mates (Dixonie, Cundyie and Nevinie), after they decided calling him Speedieie…