Work begins on statue of Port Vale president

John Rudge is credited with putting Port Vale "on the map"

Work has started to build a 17ft (5.3m) bronze statue which will celebrate Port Vale Football Club's former manager.

John Rudge managed the club, based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, from 1983 to 1999 and is now its president.

Fans raised £100,000 towards the statue, which will sit on a plinth on Vale Park's Hamil Road fan zone.

"Rudgey is synonymous with Port Vale, with Stoke-on-Trent as a city and with the football world as a whole," said its chief executive, Matt Hancock.

"Anywhere you go, John gets spoken about. He’s such a humble, kind and normal man.

"If anyone deserves a statue, it’s John."

The statue is due to be unveiled on 21 October, Mr Rudge's 80th birthday.

He is credited with taking the club to the highest league position in its history, beating the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Everton, and neighbouring rivals, Stoke-on-Trent.

"It is an honour for supporters to have raised this amount of money for a statue," said Mr Rudge.

"I’m overwhelmed by the generosity of supporters."