Once described by the late, great George Best as the toughest full-back he had ever faced, and as England’s best full-back by Ramsey himself, Cohen earned a total of 37 senior international caps between 1964-67.
A one-club man with boyhood idols Fulham, he also played 459 times for his beloved Whites between 1956-69 - a mark bettered only by Johnny Haynes, Eddie Lowe and Les Barrett.
Cohen was forced to retire aged 29 due to a serious knee injury, moving into coaching with Fulham and England’s Under-23s team before embarking on a career in property development, and later battled bowel cancer and a tumour in his back, becoming a tireless campaigner and patron of the Bobby Moore Fund.
He was awarded an MBE in 2000 alongside fellow ‘66 winners Roger Hunt, Alan Ball, Ray Wilson and Nobby Stiles. He is honoured at Fulham with a statue outside Craven Cottage.
Cohen’s sad passing means there are now only two surviving members of England’s starting side from the 1966 World Cup final in Sir Bobby Charlton and hat-trick hero Sir Geoff Hurst, along with squad members George Eastham, Ian Callaghan and Terry Paine.
“Everyone, without exception, always said that George was such a lovely man. He will be sadly missed, my heartfelt thoughts are with George’s wife Daphne and his family.”
England plan to pay tribute to Cohen before their next home match, a Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine at Wembley on March 26.
“George won 37 caps for England and was vice-captain of our World Cup winning team. We would like to pass on our deep condolences to George’s family and friends at this sad time.”