Celtic and Lisbon Lion hero John Fallon dies aged 84 as emotional statement released

Former Celtic goalkeeper John Fallon - the 12th Lisbon Lion - has died at the age of 84, the club have announced.

Fallon was the only Celtic substitute when Jock Stein's side beat Inter Milan 2-1 in the Portuguese capital to win the European Cup in 1967.

The Cambuslang-born goalkeeper joined Celtic in 1958 and made almost 200 appearances over a 14-year period.

He played in the team that kick-started Celtic's trophy success under Stein with victory over Dunfermline in the 1965 Scottish Cup final and went on to collect 14 winners' medals in total before leaving for Motherwell. He also had a brief spell with Morton before retiring.

A statement from the Scottish champions read: "His love for Celtic, however, was a constant throughout the years, and he followed the club at home and away for the rest of life.

"His passing comes as a great sadness to us all, and the thoughts and prayers of everyone connected with Celtic Football Club are with his family and friends at this sad time."

Fallon was reunited with his European Cup winners' medal in 2019, having lost it in the wake of the final.

The memento was donated to Celtic, who returned it to its rightful owner.

Speaking at the time, Fallon told the Celtic website: "We were wading through scores of fans to get off the park and into the dressing room. It's such a great memory.

"We'll never forget it, and it's something everyone should be proud of. For the Celtic supporters, we gave them something to look at that nobody else could."

Fallon attended the funeral of fellow Lisbon Lion John Clark last month.