`He had a great enthusiasm for life, for football and Chelsea'

As the football world queued up yesterday to pay tribute to Matthew Harding, Ken Bates, the Chelsea chairman, announced that the club would be renaming the North Stand at Stamford Bridge as a permanent memorial to its late vice-chairman.

Bates and his board met in emergency session yesterday, after which Bates said: "Matthew was the catalyst of the rebuilding of Stamford Bridge," Bates said. "It was his enthusiasm and loan that allowed us to build the North Stand. Without that, it wouldn't have been possible.

"It was the unanimous decision of the board meeting that the stand would be named the Matthew Harding Stand in his memory and in recognition of what he has done for the club."

Ruud Gullit, the Chelsea player-manager, whose signing in 1995 was an early indication that Harding's money was attracting the very best players in the transfer market, was one of many who talked about his sense of loss. "He was a guy who wanted to be a player also, one of us, and was more like a supporter really than a director. He wanted it that way," Gullit said.

"I knew him for a short time but I will remember him for his laugh, happiness after a game and his enthusiasm about the club. He was really a Chelsea fan and this is something I would like to treasure."

Few felt the pain of Harding's death more than Glenn Hoddle, the England coach and Gullit's predecessor at Stamford Bridge. "It is almost unbelievable that the game should lose somebody who had so much to offer, who was so young and in such circumstances," Hoddle said.

"Matthew made a considerable contribution to football and to Chelsea in particular and still had a huge contribution to make in the future."

"He had a great enthusiasm for life, for football and Chelsea but he always said he wouldn't have done it for any other club. He'd only do it for Chelsea.

"If success is round the corner, the energy he put into the club will be a massive reason for it."

Peter Osgood, who was a key figure in Chelsea's FA Cup and European Cup-Winners' Cup triumphs in the 1970s and an idol of Harding's when the vice-chairman was growing up on the terraces, spoke of a "lovely guy" who would be missed by everybody in the game.

"Anybody who knew Matthew could only have good memories," Osgood said. "He was always surrounded by happy people, laughing and joking, living life to the full. The club had been in the doldrums for 25 years before he came and put his money in the club.

"You only have to look at the players. We've got Ruud Gullit, Gianluca Vialli, Frank Leboeuf, Roberto Di Matteo. All class players.

Other tributes came from the the Wimbledon chairman, Sam Hammam, who laid a wreath outside the ground and added: "It's amazing how the good die young.

Graham Kelly, the Football Association chief executive, added: "Matthew had an infectious enthusiasm for football which touched everyone he met. He is a sad loss to the game he loved."

The Manchester United chairman, Martin Edwards, said the news was "very very sad", with messages of condolences also being sent by Liverpool and Middlesbrough.

Another came from the Wimbledon midfielder and former Chelsea player, Vinnie Jones, who said the news had left him "chilled to the bone".

"He was a friend to all football players and supporters, a warm man whose energy was infectious," Jones said. All Premiership clubs will observe a minute's silence before this weekend's matches.