Elton John has paid a warm tribute to former England manager Graham Taylor, who died at the age of 72 on Thursday.

Pop superstar John appointed Taylor as manager of Watford in June 1977 having become chairman of his hometown club the previous year.

Taylor famously led Watford from the Fourth Division to England's top flight in an astonishing five-year period, with his newcomers finishing second in Division One at the first attempt in 1982-83.

Taylor ended his initial association with Watford in 1987, moving to Aston Villa, and John began the process of looking for a buyer, which ended in 1990 when he sold a 93 per cent stake to Jack Petchey.

In 1997, the singer-songwriter bought Watford back off Petchey, becoming chairman once more and, with Taylor also back in the dugout, the club produced echoes of their glory days by winning back-to-back promotions from Division Two to the Premier League.