Nottingham Forest legend Frank Clark says it is going to be difficult for Leyton Orient to fill the void left by "loved" Justin Edinburgh, who died last week, aged 49.
A former Tottenham Hotspur left-back, Edinburgh died on Saturday, five days after suffering cardiac arrest.
Last season he guided the O's to automatic promotion back into the Football League after quickly becoming an adored member of the club staff.
Clark, an ex-Orient manager who is now vice chairman of the League Manager's Association, told BBC Radio 5 live how Edinburgh was destined for a long career as a league manager and just how loved he was by everybody at Brisbane Road.
"This is tragic," he said. "This is tragic for Justin and his family.
"He was looking forward to this season having got Orient back into the Football League.
"He had done such a fantastic job and he was doing it the old fashioned way. He was starting off way down in non-league after he had a few ups and downs before that, which is inevitable.
"He would have been looking forward to a brilliant career in the league as a manager.
"And he was a fantastic player. You don't play two hundred games for a team like Tottenham Hotspur if you can't play.
"The fans loved him. That was obvious. We were down there five or six weeks ago for a promotion celebration and the club was in such good spirits.
"The new owners had brought it back to being a proper football club and Justin had taken them to promotion and to the FA Trophy final. The place was bursting with optimism.
"It is going to be very difficult for the club now."
