Former Newcastle and Wimbledon manager Joe Kinnear has died at the age of 77 after a battle with dementia. A statement from his family confirmed the tragic news on Sunday evening.
The family’s statement read: “We are sad to announce that Joe passed away peacefully this afternoon surrounded by his family.”
Kinnear, who also coached Luton and Nottingham Forest, was diagnosed with dementia in 2015. The ex-Republic of Ireland international had a stellar playing career in which he won the FA Cup, League Cup twice and UEFA Cup with Tottenham.
He began his career at White Hart Lane, going on to make 258 appearances across 10 seasons before joining Brighton in 1975, but retired from football after just one season on the south coast.
Kinnear’s wife Bonnie opened up on her husband’s battle with dementia in a 2021 interview with the Telegraph. “He started to get moody – a bit depressed. I thought, ‘This isn’t right’,” she said.
“Then he got aggressive in certain situations. It just wasn’t Joe. It was a problem trying to get him to see somebody but we eventually got him to a doctor and he was diagnosed in 2015.
“They classed it as early onset vascular dementia and, since then, he has just deteriorated. He’s in the late stage. It is heartbreaking to see how someone can change. He was larger than life. He loved people. He’d walk in a pub, buy everyone a drink, tell funny stories and be the life and soul of the party.”
