SUNDERLAND manager Chris Coleman has described how and why he has always held Ray Wilkins in such high regard following the former England midfielder’s death aged just 61.

Tributes have poured in from across the world for Wilkins after he died in hospital following a cardiac arrest.

Wilkins, who was regularly seen on Sky Sports sharing his views on the game, won 84 caps for his country during 1976-86 and Coleman became good friends with him on and off the pitch.

The Sunderland boss recalls how the former AC Milan and Chelsea man showed his warm and infectious personality after Coleman was left with career threatening injuries following a car crash in 2001.

The pair were teammates at Crystal Palace and Wilkins then signed Coleman when he was Fulham manager in 1997.

Coleman added: "He signed me for Fulham and I had a great relationship with him. I remember when I had a car crash, he was the first at my bedside and he wasn't even at Fulham then, he had moved on, he was that type of football man.

"Anybody you talk to say Ray Wilkins is an icon in football - certainly from my era. He’s from a fantastic family, lovely people, he is a huge, huge loss.

"He text me when I was struggling with Wales 'keep your chin up, keep going' and then text me when we were doing well too. He was a top fella, a top person.”

Coleman, speaking at the Academy of Light, is the latest to talk affectionately about Wilkins, including the likes of Gary Lineker, Terry Butcher and Peter Reid.

"What a great man," said Coleman. "We signed him at Crystal Palace, he was probably about 35 then Ray, and we had just got promoted into the Premier League.

"He was 35 and we were all in awe of his ability and talent, even at that age. The ball was like a magnet on his foot and it was the first time I had been around that quality, an ex-England captain. The attraction for me was what he was like as a fella, a great guy.”