Manchester City have revealed that renowned sculptor David Williams-Ellis is behind the latest statue to be unveiled at the Etihad.
And the latest installation is a tribute to City legends Colin Bell, Francis Lee, and Mike Summerbee.
It will be located on the west side of the perimeter of the Etihad Stadium and will be unveiled on Tuesday morning ahead of the UEFA Champions League meeting with RB Leipzig later that day.
Fans are invited to visit the latest in City’s legacy project – a series of tributes to key figures first announced in 2019 by Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak.
On the east side of the Etihad Stadium fans have already seen tributes to modern-day legends Vincent Kompany, Sergio Aguero and David Silva.
And there are permanent mosaic artworks featured throughout the City Football Academy.
A student of eminent octogenarian drawing teacher, Nerina Simi, Williams-Ellis sought out classical training in Florence where his signature style was first established.
His sculptures, worked in clay, from life, are inspired by the romanticism of French sculptors Auguste Rodin and Antoine Bourdelle and are noted for their sense of movement and vitality.
With exhibitions proudly displayed at Perthshire’s Scone Palace, Aberdeen’s Maritime Museum and the IFC Building in Shanghai, Williams-Ellis is perhaps most famously known for his commission of the Normandy Memorial Trust’s D-Day Sculpture.
That monument was unveiled by French President Emmanuel Macron and then-British Prime Minister Theresa May in 2019.
Designed and created at his Oxfordshire home studio, Williams-Ellis’s work on this commission has focused on capturing the motion and characteristics of each player and embodying the spirit of their combined 30 years representing Manchester City.
Speaking of his appointment to the project David Williams-Ellis said: “It is a great honour to create a work of art for Manchester City Football Club celebrating the diverse, talented players, Bell, Lee and Summerbee.
“It’s been an extraordinary last two years, working on this project that celebrates these players from a great era in Manchester City’s football history.
“I hope that the work will give a sense of history and place to the legions of fans and visitors that come to the football ground from around the world and become an enduring part of Manchester’s cultural landscape.”