IT'S a remarkable story that started in Crook and saw the son of a miner change the face of football.

When you think of Barcelona's best ever bosses, Pep Guardiola and Johan Cruyff almost certainly immediately spring to mind.

But what about their longest-serving manager of all time? A boss who guided the giants to five Catalan titles and two Copa del Rey trophies and an innovator who led the way with the introduction of the passing game that would become the precursor to Tiki-Taka.

Jack Greenwell hailed from the North East but had an impact on the game across the globe.

And last night his legacy was recognised and celebrated when he was posthumously inducted into the National Football Museum Hall of Fame.

Greenwell managed a number of other clubs in Spain before heading for South America and Peru, where he was a domestic boss and also took charge of the national side, leading them to their first Copa America title.

Representatives from Barcelona, Valencia and the Peruvian Football Federation were all in attendance at last night's celebration, at Durham University.

As were officials from Crook Town and West Auckland Town, where Greenwell started out on his unbelievable journey.

Like most men of his time, Greenwell followed in his father’s footsteps and worked as a putter in the mines, aged 13.

Four years later, the young wing-half signed for Crook Town, who had just won the FA Amateur Cup.

In October 1908, Greenwell joined West Auckland FC in the same league. The following year, the side were invited to take part in an international football competition called The Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy, dubbed by many as ‘the first World Cup’.

A lot of the players were coal miners and could not afford to go on the trip to Turin, in Italy. West Auckland, of course, went on to lift the trophy, beating Winterthur. from Switzerland, 2-0 in the final.

And that was when Greenwell was approached by Barcelona's president Joan Gamper and asked to sign.

Easy decision? Clearly not. It took Greenwell three years of deliberation before he decided to take the plunge and join Barcelona as a player in 1912.

He only had four months in the playing squad before taking charge of the side in January, 1913, as a player-manager when he was just 28.

He would go on to have two spells as boss of Barça, from 1913 to 1923 and from 1931 to 1933 - in charge for a total of 492 games.

During his time in Spain, he also managed UE Sants, CD Castellón, Sporting De Gijon, Valencia, and led Espanyol to a Catalan title, as well as a Copa Del Rey win over Real Madrid.

Greenwell then spent one season coaching Real Sociedad Alfonso XIII, now known as RCD Mallorca, in the Balearic Championship, helping them retain their title.

Following the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, Greenwell was forced to flee. Soon after, he was approached by Alberto Denegri, coach of the Peruvian national team, and invited to become tactical advisor for the upcoming Olympic football tournament in Berlin.

The Northern Echo:

Greenwell’s ties with Peru would result in him moving to Lima in 1938 to become coach of both Universitario de Deportes and the Peru national team. In 1939 Universitario won the Peruvian title for the third time in their history and Peru secured their first Copa América title.

His final chapter in management came in Colombia, in 1940, when he took charge of CD Atletico Junior.

That inevitably led to involvement with the Colombian national side, helping them to prepare for the 1942 Central American and Caribbean games.

After the Games being postponed due to the outbreak of the Second World War, he took over as coach of the recently formed Club Independiente Sante Fe, in Bogotá, in 1942 and received much acclaim for his tactical awareness and discipline.

Tim Desmond, CEO of the National Football Museum, said: "Greenwell undoubtedly played a big part in the globalization and shaping of football as we know it today, and the Museum is delighted to be inducting him into the Hall of Fame.

"His legacy serves as an inspiration to football enthusiasts around the world and it’s our role to help shine a light on these astounding stories from the beautiful game."

There are now plans in place to tour the award across the clubs and national football associations that Greenwell impacted.