Sir Bobby was like my father, says Terry Butcher

Ex-England captain Butcher recalls his 14-year bond with Sir Bobby Robson, who gave him his first professional contract at Ipswich and managed him through the 1990 World Cup.

Terry Butcher has spoken to the BBC ahead of a new book about Sir Bobby Robson titled Almost Immortal, which examines the manager's eight years in charge of England and features Butcher as the main narrator.

Butcher, who captained England at the 1990 World Cup, described Robson as being like a father to him. "When you're led by someone like that, you have great memories all throughout your career," the 67-year-old said. "The players loved him, they really loved him. He was very loyal. He was very honest with them and he got them – he knew which buttons to press."

Robson gave Butcher his first professional contract at Ipswich in the 1970s. The relationship was not always smooth, with Butcher acknowledging that Robson "used to have a go at me sometimes, when things weren't going well," but he understood the manager's intent. Butcher credited Robson with instilling camaraderie within the team and putting players at ease. England reached the 1990 World Cup semi-final under Robson before losing to West Germany on penalties.