City chief recalled legendary Rovers footballer, American (5)
I believe the answer is:
mayor
'city chief' is the definition.
(leader of a city)
'recalled legendary rovers footballer american' is the wordplay.
'recalled' says the letters should be written in reverse.
'legendary rovers footballer' becomes 'Roy' (footballer in the comic Roy of the Rovers).
'american' becomes 'Am' (abbreviation in some contexts).
'roy'+'am'='royam'
'royam' reversed gives 'MAYOR'.
(Other definitions for mayor that I've seen before include "Chief magistrate" , "For example, Henchard" , "Municipal head" , "Officer" , "Local dignitary" .)