Trevor Francis pictured after scoring the only goal in the European Cup final in 1979. AFP Photo

Paul Kennedy

I thought it was interesting timing that in a week when a mega-rich club in Saudi Arabia tabled a ridiculous bid somewhere in the region of $300 million for French forward Kylian Mbappe, former England footballer Trevor Francis passed away.

Francis in his pomp was one of the best players in England. A real golden-boy of British football in the 1970s and 80s.

I’m not comparing him to Mbappe by any stretch of the imagination, but those of you in the know will get what I’m on about.

Francis made history in 1979 when he became the first ever footballer to be sold between British clubs for £1 million.

Nottingham Forest paid Birmingham the pricey sum to secure his services.

One-of-a-kind manager Brian Clough would often insist, tongue in cheek, that the price they paid was actually £999,999, in an attempt to take a little pressure off Trevor’s shoulders.

Francis did well for Forest, scoring 28 goals in 70 appearances including the only goal in the 1979 European Cup final.

A giant picture of Francis stooping to head the ball remains on display in the main entrance and reception area of Forest's City Ground stadium.

He also, unusual even back then, spent a few summers playing in the US for Detroit Express where he scored 36 goals in 33 regular season matches and had 18 assists, placing him one spot ahead of Pelé on the all-time scoring list, despite playing 23 fewer games.

After a short spell at Manchester City, Francis went to Italy where he played for both Sampdoria and Atalanta.

Despite having the millstone around his neck of being the first ever £1 million player, he never let it go to his head. He oozed class on the pitch and was a gentleman off it.

Francis also had a decent spell as manager too.

In the early 1990s he led Sheffield Wednesday to two cup finals and a third place in the final season of the old First Division.

I was just a kid when he Nottingham Forest splashed the cash on Francis, but it was a really big deal back then.

A million quid? For one player? Ridiculous!

And just look how far we have come, and how much the game as developed.

According to the The Bank of England, £1 million in 1979 is the equivalent of around £4.5 million today. Other financial institutes estimate it a little higher, around £6.5 million.

Whatever their guesses, the value a 25-year-old Trevor Francis in today’s market? An awful lot more than £6.5 million, that’s for sure.