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Andy King, former Everton midfielder, dies of heart attack at age 58

Former Everton midfielder Andy King has died from a heart attack at the age of 58.

King died at his home on Wednesday, said a statement released by MK Dons, the club for whom he was working as chief scout.

The former England Under-21 international had two spells at Everton, who he first joined as a 19-year-old from Luton in 1976.

He is arguably best remembered for scoring the spectacular goal that ended the Toffees' seven-year wait for a derby victory, when they beat Liverpool 1-0 at Goodison Park in October 1978.

King left for QPR in 1980, then spent a year with West Brom before returning to Everton in 1982.

He later had spells in Ireland, Holland and Sweden before finishing his playing career back in England at non-league Southport, and then moving into management.

King managed Mansfield, Swindon and non-league Grays Athletic, as well as serving as part of the coaching team at Northampton before joining MK Dons as chief scout in 2014.

His former Everton teammates have been among those to pay tribute to him.

Retired Republic of Ireland midfielder Kevin Sheedy, now a youth coach at Goodison Park, tweeted: "Really sad news about Andy King. Top fella and was a great player. Will be sorely missed. Rest in peace Andy."

Ex-Everton defender Derek Mountfield added: "Gutted to gear about the passing of Andy King. Great player, fella and team-mate. Will miss his cheeky wit."

Former midfielder Peter Reid told Everton's website: "I'm absolutely devastated. I spoke to him last week. We kept in touch regularly and it's just very, very sad news.

"He quickly became a very good friend as well as a teammate at Everton. Working with him was fantastic because he had an infectious personality, great wit and he was a really bubbly person."