Denis Law: Bomber Brown was worth £50m

Manchester United and Scotland legend Denis Law was the surprise special guest as 'Bomber' saw his bronze statue unveiled outside the Hawthorns.

And the 74-year-old, on whom the Baggies' ultimate fans' favourite attempted to model his game as a youngster, paid his own tribute to the man who called him "the best".

"Tony would be a superstar now, without a doubt," said Law, who compared 'Bomber' to modern-day Manchester United great Paul Scholes.

"Back then the game was all about British players and being capped for your country then wasn't as easy then as it is today, when you have far few players to select from.

"What would he be worth in today's market?

"The prices just keep going up. He would definitely be in that £50m category if that's what you're paying in today's market.

"He was a midfield player who was excellent and could score goals as well and was involved in the game. He was one of the players that, when we played West Brom, we would be wary about because he always seemed to get goals from everywhere, often on the volley."

Brown, a boyhood Manchester United fan, travelled to watch their rivals Manchester City to see Law, who began his career in England at Maine Road.

At yesterday's VIP ceremony to celebrate the unveiling of the statue, Brown began to speak of how he modelled his game and his goal celebration on Law.

And Law was full of praise for the Baggies hero, who netted 279 goals in 720 games, won the League Cup in 1966, FA Cup in 1968 and promotion to the First Division in 1976.

He won one England cap in a Wembley friendly against Wales. "Whatever the date was, I was going to be here," said Law.

"It's a bit embarrassing when somebody calls you a hero. You don't quite get your head around it. And Tony was an excellent player himself. He was very similar to Paul Scholes in a way.

"Tony scored more goals than Paul Scholes but they were very similar players.

"He was one of the best and probably never got the recognition he deserved from England at the time.

"The game has changed. In those days there were so many foreign players but in those days there were a lot of English and Scottish players, so he didn't get the number of caps he should have got because of the players who were around at the time.

"I always found him to be a nice guy, and a very humble guy, although he never showed that when we played together. That was a different ball game."

And Law reminisced about the difference between Brown's modest, humble off-field persona and his marauding goalscoring displays from midfield on it.

"The fact he was going on the pitch with so many thousand people watching – that is where he came alive," said Law.

"There were a lot of players who are fairly quiet off the field but brilliant when they got on it, none more so than Paul Scholes.

"Paul didn't score the goals that Tony did but he would be a player you would fear.

"You can't fault him in any area. He maybe wasn't the greatest at heading the ball but at the same time he got stuck in and was a really tremendous player."

Three years after being told of the club's plans for the statue, 'Bomber' was joined by Law and a host of former team-mates as he took the wraps off the bronze statue in windy conditions in front of more than 200 supporters, with the club limiting the number of tickets issued to the public.

The event was attended by dozens of ex-players including 1968 FA Cup winners Graham Williams and Doug Fraser, who were reunited with the trophy.

It visited The Hawthorns for the unveiling as part of a nationwide tour ahead of this weekend's first-round matches.

Other former Baggies team-mates including Len Cantello, Cyrille Regis, Ally Brown, Asa Hartford, Mickey Fudge, John Wile and Ally Robertson were also present, alongside former managers Ron Atkinson and Johnny Giles.

The statue features 'Bomber's' trademark 1970s moustache but not his famous perm, with the Oldham-born midfielder revealing it was based, at his request, on his famous volley against Valencia at the Hawthorns in 1978.

"Everything was my decision," he said. "They asked me about the perm and I know I'm well-known for that but really I only had the perm for a short time but most of the time I didn't have it.

"I wanted to be remembered for the majority of my career. It was all about what it was based on and I always liked the action from the Valencia goal.

"There is a sequence of photos at the club showing that shot from different angles.

"I had always liked that so at the very beginning I thought if they could do that it would be pleasing. It's based on that volley.

"The first thing I looked for was the likeness in the face, and I though it looked like me in my own mind.

"It does look like me and we've all been around the country looking at statues and some really don't have a resemblance.

"And by and large they are usually just static so for this to be an action one is even better and I think, from talking to a few of the supporters, they're thrilled with it as well."

Sculptor Jonathan Wylder was on hand to see his latest statue unveiled and hear a host of famous guests take to the stage to pay tribute to the footballing career of 'Bomber'.

Striking great Regis said: "It was great playing with Bomber as a team-mate, although all I heard from him for about three or four years was 'hold the ball up!'

"That was a fundamental part of getting Bomber into the box, ghosting in to score his goals, and it was a pleasure playing with him.

"One of the great things about Bomber was his professionalism.

"In an era when there was a drinking and partying culture, Tony Brown stands out as a consummate professional.

"He never gave us a rollicking for doing it but his lifestyle and his love and passion for the game were second to none and, as a football agent now, when I see young kids today I would love to get Bomber to talk to them.

"I would just say 'this is the consummate professional with your attitude, desire and love.'And his humility was outstanding.

"He was always winding me up. He was too sharp for me! He never got into the drinking culture but he was a fundamental part of the team spirit.

"He ghosted into the box to score goals and the gift he had for that, the appetite to score goals and the ability to appreciate team-mates around him was a real pleasure.

"For me he is right up there with the top players. His record speaks for itself and for me he is 'Mr Albion'.

"His desire, passion and love for Albion is really up there and there aren't that many people who I would say rank alongside Tony Brown – maybe Bryan Robson and Laurie Cunningham – but Bomber was different class."

Atkinson reminisced about his famous Baggies teams of the late 1970s and likened Brown to modern-day Chelsea legend and long-time England star Frank Lampard.

"It was a super team and there were some smashing teams about then," he said.

"Nearly every English champion was the European Champion so we had some good sides with Liverpool, Villa, Nottingham Forest and the likes, and our side could stand toe to toe with them," he said.

"I believe, if we hadn't had a big freeze in 1978, where we didn't play for five or six matches, we would have gone on and won the league. Never did they moan or complain and Bomber epitomised that.

"They felt it was a privilege to be part of a professional football club. Bomber was as good as Frank Lampard, and he's a good player.

"Bomber scored as many goals as him and he put a shift in working hard for the team.

"He could have earned his place in the team as a footballer without his goals. His goals were a phenomenal bonus.

"He had his little one-liners but they were never, ever offensive. I think he was genuinely proud to be called a professional footballer."

The event was presented by Free Radio commentator Tom Ross, who recalled 'Bomber's' humour during one of his weekly co-commentaries assignments.

"Albion were winning 3-1 at Charlton and this lunatic behind leant over and was effing and jeffing down our microphone," said Ross.

"He had had enough and I threw the headphones off and stood up and turned around, and the guy was 7ft tall, bald, with earrings and tattoos and I was in trouble.

"I said 'you're an absolute disgrace, we've got all these kids listening...'. And I heard a voice in my ear say 'you're on your own'. My hero! He's so sharp with his one-liners."