Sheffield United: England, Alf Ramsey, the Soviet Union, East Germany and the legendary Tony Currie

But what he discovered inside, after anxiously tearing the paper open en route to the dressing rooms at Bramall Lane, was a summons. England under-23’s, who later became the under-21’s following an administrative reorganisation, would soon require his presence at their base on the outskirts of London.

“That’s how you got notified you’d been called-up in those days,” Currie, the former Sheffield United midfielder tells The Star ahead of Tuesday’s match between the Young Lions and their German counterparts at United’s home stadium. “There wasn’t a telephone call or anything like that. They sent this little package through the post and inside was your invitation and then a small booklet, telling you where to go, what time you had to be there and the rest of the itinerary. There were no club cars. You made your own way on expenses. An FA stamp on the front, that was the only clue as to what it was.

“But even then I was a bit worried, because you didn’t really know what was going on.”

Currie still has some of those tiny booklets in his possession to this day. “My mum saved them, together with all the programmes, and then they came back to me.” Some of the finer details of his trips might have become lost in the mists of time. But Currie, who would later go on to captain his country before winning the first of 17 senior caps, can still vividly recollect the sense of pride he felt after learning the late Sir Alf Ramsey wanted him to face Wales at Ashton Gate. Many of those also involved in the match, which saw Currie find the back of the net, would also go on to become full internationals and household names: Peter Shilton, Brian Kidd, the 19-year-old Currie himself and fellow goalscorer Peter Osgood.

“I was still a teenager and it was one hell of an honour. Joe Royle, I’ve still got good memories of working with him and the likes of David Nish as well. He went on to break the British transfer record.

“You didn’t just have teammates. You made friends as well.”

One of those who would become a lifelong pal was Osgood’s Chelsea colleague Alan Hudson. Now aged 71, a year younger than Currie, he also eventually forced his way into the full England line-up despite a strained relationship with the powers-that-be.

“We’ve actually been in contact a lot more over the past 15 years or so than when we were younger,” Currie says. “I suppose that’s how it goes. He only played twice which was ridiculous really, given the talent he had.”

Currie’s collection of caps would also probably have trebled had Ramsey not been replaced, first by Joe Mercer and then Don Revie. The former Leeds chief developed a bizarre dislike for mavericks after being appointed. Or, as the likes of Currie, Hudson and Frank Worthington should really have been called, footballers with the ability to translate their vivid imaginations into beautiful passages of play.

“Joe picked flair footballers. He had no problem with it but unfortunately I was injured for his time in charge. Don, he thought me and Huddy couldn’t work together because we wouldn’t win the ball. The thing was, if you’d have stuck us in there, that wouldn’t have mattered. We’d always have had it.”

Ramsey did have Currie’s back, eventually asking him to captain the under-23’s. So what type of skipper was he? Despite being an extrovert on the pitch, Currie was always an introvert off it.

“Alf, despite what people think, he was never a big one for these grand team talks. He preferred to come round and have a word one to one, so he’ll have just pulled me to one side and told me.

“What an honour again. I wasn’t one for shouting on the pitch, ordering people about or giving them instructions. I didn’t need to. These lads all knew what they were doing, otherwise they wouldn’t have been there in the first place. If anyone new came into the group and was nervous, that’s what I used to tell them. I preferred to try and lead by example. One of those.”

United’s Rhian Brewster, Tommy Doyle and James McAtee are all in the under-21’s squad which enters the meeting with Germany on the back of a statement win over Italy in Pescara. After scoring both their goals in a 2-0 victory, Brewster is expected to spearhead Lee Carsley’s attack while another United player, Reda Khadra, could feature up front for the visitors.

Only reunified in 1990 following the collapse of the Berlin Wall, Currie faced both East and West Germany during his spell with the under-23’s; venturing behind the Iron Curtain for meetings against the GDR, Poland and the Soviet Union in the early Seventies.

“We passed through Checkpoint Charlie into East Germany. That was scary, because all the border guards came on the bus and made sure everyone was cleared. There were the dogs and all these soldiers with machine guns. It was an experience. They tell me Magdeburg, where we played, is lovely but we only saw the hotel.

“In Russia, there were these women wearing uniforms when you came out of a lift where we were staying, and they were also there to make sure you were supposed to be on that floor.”

Although both the game and the world has changed beyond all recognition since Currie’s England days, he is delighted to see so many members of the squad which has steered United to the top of the Championship involved this evening.

“It’s wonderful for them and it’s wonderful for us. Like I told the new lads back in the old days, you get picked for a reason.”

MORE: https://www.thestar.co.uk/sport/football/sheffield-united/sheffield-united-the-winners-losers-and-biggest-mystery-of-the-season-so-far-3853987