PAST MANAGER PROFILE - William E. Barclay

William E. Barclay: 'Joint Manager' (1892-96)

Birthplace:

Honours:
2 SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIPS 1893-94, 1895-96

1 LANCASHIRE LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 1892-93

PROFILE

After the defection, Houlding and Barclay were left with a football ground and no team, but together rapidly and successfully created a brand new one - Liverpool Football Club.
Barclay was the actual 'secretary-manager' of Liverpool Football Club during this period and had been involved at Liverpool before John McKenna, who seems to have acted as a 'coach-manager'. The tremendous work achieved by Barclay should not be overlooked, as he was the organisational force that helped create the great 'Team of the Macs' and the early successes of the Club.

A widely respected and well-liked man, Barclay later became a headmaster of the Industrial Schools in Everton Crescent, Liverpool.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Gérard Houllier

GERARD HOULLIER OBE

Former Clubs as Staff : Le Touquet, Arras, Noeux-les-Mines, Lens, Paris St Germain

Date of Birth : 03/10/1947

Birthplace : Therouanne

Joined : 1998


PROFILE

Though born in Therouanne, France, Gerard Houllier OBE has a long history of supporting Liverpool. It started in September 1969, when he was teaching at Alsop school in Walton. He stood on the Kop and watched the Reds defeat Dundalk 10-0.

In July 1998, Houllier returned to the city when he was appointed joint manager of the Reds alongside Roy Evans.
Gerard began his managerial career in 1973 as player-coach with Le Touquet. Spells at Arras and Noeux Les Mines followed before he managed Lens for three years and then guided Paris St.Germain to the French title in 1986.

Gerard then became Technical Director and assistant to the French national team, before becoming National Coach himself until 1994. He also coached the French team who won the European Under-18 Championship in 1996, and took the U-20s to the quarter-finals of the World Championships the following year. He also played an instrumental role in France winning the World Cup in 1998.

His managerial talents were much sought after during the summer of 1998 and Liverpool had to move swiftly to secure his services. At first Houllier was joint manager with Roy Evans but when that didn't work, Evans left the club in November 1998.

Houllier assumed sole control and in the summer of 1999 he launched an extensive programme of team rebuilding.

Success followed and in February 2001 he guided the Reds to a first trophy in six years, his first as the Reds won the Worthington Cup. He followed that by leading the Reds to the historic treble and five trophies in 2001, including the FA Cup, UEFA Cup, UEFA Super Cup and Charity Shield.

He had major heart surgery in October 2001 but returned to managerial duties in March 2002 against Roma at Anfield, as the team finished second in the Barclays Premiership in 2001/02 and reached the quarter-final of the Champions League.

Houllier led the team to another Worthington Cup success before he was awarded the prestigious OBE in 2003.

The folllowing season he guided the Reds to Champions League qualification but saw his six-year tenure as Anfield chief curtailed on 24 May 2004.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Roy Evans

Roy Evans : Manager (1994 - June 1998) Joint-Manager (July 1998 - Nov. 1998)

Date of Birth: 4/10/48

Birthplace: Bootle, Merseyside

Honours: 1 LEAGUE CUP 1994-95

RUNNERS UP: FA Cup - 1995-96


PROFILE

Roy Evans' love affair with Liverpool began at the age of seven when he attended his first game at Anfield. As he grew older he went on to play at left-back for England schoolboys in 1963 before joining Liverpool as an apprentice two years later.
He made his full debut in 1969, playing 3 games in the 1969/70 season, and played occasionally at left-back for Liverpool during the seasons 1969/70 to 1973/74, but following Shankly's shock resignation in 1974 Bob Paisley persuaded him, at the age of 25, to direct his talents into coaching, and he became the youngest member of the famous 'Boot Room'. John Smith, the Chairman at the time, predicted: "We have not made an appointment for the present but for the future. One day Roy Evans will be our manager." Appointed Reserve Team Coach, Roy won the Central League Championship in his first season, 1975, and went on to win it seven times in nine years, before Joe Fagan took over as manager from the retiring Paisley, and appointed him to the senior coaching staff, where he played a part in Liverpool's great triumphs under Fagan, including the Treble of 1983/84, and subsequently under Dalglish, including the Double of 1985/86.

After Dalglish had stunned everyone by resigning in 1991, Graeme Souness was brought in as manager. Evans was appointed Souness's assistant in 1993. Roy eventually became the Liverpool Manager in 1993/94 following the departure of Graeme Souness, and quickly returned a calming influence to the Club - chairman David Moores described him as: "The last of the Shankly lads". Evans was popular choice, and gave a great boost to the Club.

However he too struggled with worryingly lack-lustre displays from his players and the abysmal F A Cup appearance in 1996 against Manchester United and their ill-advised Armani suits, led to the damaging 'Spice Boy' tag being applied to his leading players.

This was a defining moment in retrospect as an F A Cup win would have given Evans an invaluable lift. As it was, despite winning the League Cup in 1994/95 and never finishing below 4th in the League after the season when he first took over, Roy was unable to deliver another cup or the League Championship which the Club and its fans demanded.

His transfer deals were only qualified successes, but his support and development of the likes of Robbie Fowler, Steve McManaman and Michael Owen in particular, stand as proof that he knew how to develop local talent. Evans to his credit reacted positively to the unusual decision to bring in a joint manager - Gérard Houllier - to share the burden at the start of the 1998/99 season, and they did their best to make the partnership work.

The arrangement, however, was not a success, and Roy and the Club decided by mutual agreement that he would leave, making the sad announcement on 12th November 1998.

PAST PLAYER PROFILE - Graeme Souness

Graeme Souness : Midfielder (1978-1984) & Manager (1990-1994)

Date of Birth: 6-5-1953

Birthplace: Edinburgh

Debut : 14th January 1978 v West Bromwich Albion (A) Football League Division One: won 1-0

1st team games: 358

1st team goals: 56

Other clubs: Tottenham Hotspur, Middlesbrough, Sampdoria, Rangers (player/manager then manager), Galatasaray (manager), Southampton (manager), Torino (manager), Benfica (manager), Blackburn Rovers (manager)

International caps while with Liverpool: 37

International goals while with Liverpool:

Honours with Liverpool: First Division Championship 1978/79, 1979/80, 1981/82, 1982/83 & 1983/84, FA Cup 1992 (manager), League/Milk Cup 1981, 1982, 1983 & 1984, European Cup 1978, 1981 & 1984, Charity Shield 1979, 1980 & 1982

PROFILE

In six successful seasons as a Liverpool player Graeme Souness was at the heart of Liverpool's triumphs. Memorably described as "a bear of a player with the delicacy of a violinist" he was a high-octane blend of amazing strength and bewitching subtlety.
One of Bob Paisley's majestic trio of Scottish captures, with Kenny Dalglish and Alan Hansen, he cost £352,000 from Middlesbrough in January 1978 . Five months later he supplied the pass at Wembley for his room-mate Dalglish to score the goal that beat Bruges to retain the European Cup. In general during his Anfield career the Scotland captain responded brilliantly to Paisley's demand to curb his explosive temperament and he became a midfielder of immense stature.

He moved to Italian football in 1984 but returned to the UK as player/manager with Glasgow Rangers, leading them to the Scottish championship. Following the surprise resignation of Kenny Dalglish he seemed the obvious successor and enthusiastically took up the task of building a new Liverpool team.

However his time as manager at the club has become synonymous with mistakes, ill-judged media representation, poor transfer decisions and falling standards on the pitch. Mature reflection by Souness and the Club shows that in fact his mangership was not without success and his failures were not totally of his own making. Liverpool won the FA Cup in 1992 and this was despite life-threatening heart surgery in the days prior to Souness gingerly leading out his players.

Souness sadly, marred this triumph by poorly timed publicity in the Sun newspaper. He explained the story himself in 1999, in an interview with Garth Crooks: "Because the game went to penalties, the paper missed the deadline. That picture [of Souness with his future bride] ended up in the newspaper on the Wednesday - the anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster. I should have resigned then, looking back.

"I will forever be sorry it happened. It was out of my control. I was in hospital having an operation which, as it turned out, was life threatening. It was a foolish mistake, but when somebody tells you at 37 that you are going to have open heart surgery and that you might die, how would you react? I reacted in a way which I'll regret for the rest of my life. I'm sorry to the people on Merseyside whom I offended and I shall eternally be sorry".

In other respects as Souness himself reflected in December 1999 "in the right place at the wrong time". He explains: "What has happened since has gone to prove that I was not to blame for all the ills...my problem was that I tried to change it too quickly." He admits that he was shocked to the core by a change in the attitude amongst his squad and that this led to rapid hiring and firing as he sought to remove players who despite ability, offended this dedicated professional: "I found the change of mood in the dressing room both startling and alarming. How could standards have slipped so badly? I could not accept the lack of determination and fire in their bodies to win games for Liverpool".

Whilst this was a sentiment shared by all Reds fans, his choices of replacement was at times woefully poor, with Paul Stewart and Torben Piechnik standing as testimony to this fact. The removal of the 'Boot Room' under Souness is often quoted as one of his great mistakes - in actual fact it was a proposal planned by the directors at the time of Dalglish and was not a Souness decision.

All the training and behind-the-scenes work had been, and continued to be, managed by Ronnie Moran. No changes were made to a system that had worked for years. The conversion of a small boot store to a press room has become a symbol of the frustration of the fans, whereas it played no actual part in the under-achievement of this period.

Souness is an intelligent, articulate and highly motivated man, he was an awesome captain for the club and gave his all to the job as manager. Sadly his memory is still tarnished, but perhaps in time his faults will be forgiven and his valuable F A Cup win given the appreciation it is deserved.

PAST PLAYER PROFILE - Kenny Dalglish

Kenny Dalglish MBE:

Date of Birth: 04-03-1951

Birthplace: Glasgow

Debut : 13th August 1977 v Manchester United (N) Charity Shield: Drew 0-0
1st team games: 511
1st team goals: 172
Other clubs: Playing: Celtic . Management: Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, Celtic
International caps while with Liverpool: 54
International goals while with Liverpool:
Honours with Liverpool: First Division Championship: 1978/79, 1979/80, 1981/82, 1982/83, 1983/84, 1985/86 (player/manager), 1987/88 (player/manager) & 1989/90 (player/manager), FA Cup 1986 (player/manager), 1989 (manager), Charity Shield 1977 (shared), 1979, 1980, 1982, 1986 (shared), European Super Cup 1977, Screen Sport Super Cup 1986 (player/manager) European Cup 1978, 1981 & 1984

PROFILE

Considered by many to be the greatest player in Liverpool history Dalglish gloriously displayed that priceless quality of performing as a brilliant individual within a team framework. "His genius is not only in his own ability but in making others play", proclaimed Bob Paisley, the manager who signed him from Celtic for £440,000 in August 1977.
With Kevin Keegan having departed to Hamburg for £500,000 earlier that summer the capture of Dalglish as his replacement must rank as one of football's shrewdest pieces of business as the Glaswegian who amassed a record 102 caps and joint record 30 Scotland goals inspired the club to new heights.

'King Kenny' swiftly became a Kop hero and his late partnership with Ian Rush was perhaps the finest ever seen in England.

Dalglish's majestic play was blessed with a creative vision and icy coolness only the true legends of the game possess. His 1978 European Cup winning goal against Bruges at Wembley - one of 172 he scored for the club in more than 500 appearances - was a supreme example of how he could 'freeze' play before delivering a deadly finish.

With Ray Clemence, Alan Hansen, Graeme Souness and Billy Liddell he was voted into the BBC Merseyside Team of the 20th Century and he is an MBE.

If Kenny Dalglish had simply played football for Liverpool he would be an Anfield hero. However, the fact that he managed the club to even greater success guarantees him the status of a legend.

After eight brilliant years as a player he was asked in 1985 to combine his work on and off the pitch to become Liverpool¹s first player / manager. It was an inspired choice. In the space of five years he was voted 'Manager of the Year' three times and led Liverpool to a League and FA Cup double in 1986 and further championships in 1988 and 1990.

He was responsible for signing some fine players including John Barnes, Peter Beardsley and a young Jamie Redknapp. One of his great moves was to make the brilliant defender Alan Hansen his captain - a move applauded by all but the painfully shy Hansen. Alan however rewarded Dalglish's faith and turned in some of his finest performances under Kenny.

When it came to transfers, the purchase of John Aldridge to replace the surely irreplaceable Ian Rush equalled that of Paisley buying Dalglish to replace Keegan. The terrible, shattering events at Hillsborough on April 15th 1989, spelt the end of Dalglish's time with the club, and indeed for a time, with football. Dalglish and his squad spent countless hours trying to find ways to bring comfort to the bereaved and traumatised, but eventually if proved too much for this sensitive man. He suddenly resigned in 1991, after admitting that the strain and emotional distress of the Hillsborough tragedy had made him feel like his 'head would explode'.

The effect on Merseyside was only equalled by the similarly surprise retirement of Bill Shankly. Whilst few would dispute his reasons, there was dismay that one of the great periods in the Club's history was closing: For the fans player/manager Dalglish had taken them on a wonderful, joyous ride through the League and the passion he engendered was equalled only by Shankly.

His later managerial successes proved his time at Anfield had been no fluke as he joined the select band of men to have taken two clubs to the championship title when he joined Blackburn Rovers. Soon after he moved on to Newcastle United. After an indifferent spell in the North East, and a shock dismissal, he spent a short spell back at Celtic as director of football operations with fellow ex-Red John Barnes as manager and is now enjoying his retirement from the game

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Joe Fagan

Joe Fagan : Manager (1983-85)

Honours: 1 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 1983-84
1 LEAGUE CUP 1983-84
1 EUROPEAN CUP 1983-84
RUNNERS UP League Championship - 1984-85 European Cup - 1984-85 European Super Cup - 1985 World Club Championship - 1984 Charity Shield - 1984

Another one to come through the Anfield ranks, Fagan is unique in the history of the club as the first Reds manager to achieve a treble of major honours, and indeed he was the first manager in British football to claim this astounding trophy haul - now sharing the distinction with Sir Alex Ferguson, who has been publicly recognised for his efforts, and of course Gerard Houllier whilst the modest and unassuming Joe Fagan has been unfairly over-looked in subsequent years by the footballing press and fraternity.

PROFILE

Fagan was appointed as Paisley's number two upon the retirement of Shankly and was always a quiet and effective worker in the 'bootroom'. However whilst he had the enormous experience of working under Shankly and Paisley, there was no doubt that he had to make serious managerial decisions immediately upon taking over - he could not simply take on Paisley's side and hope it would continue to win trophies: The inspirational Souness had left to join Sampdoria and Sammy Lee had become a shadow of the player he once was.

It was clear that astute transfer moves were needs and Fagan was up to the task. Kevin MacDonald and Jim Beglin, who all did their respective jobs with distinction were brought in as well the then unfamiliar face of Danish player Jan Molby. Molby went on to become a Kop hero and a cultured player of rare quality and it is testament to Fagan's years of accumulated experience that he could see the enormous potential in Molby.
The improvements clearly worked - never before has a manager so comprehensively announced his arrival upon the First Division - In his first season in charge The Reds won the League, European Cup and the League Cup. Furthermore they were finalists in the World Club Championship. "They were so efficient, it was chilling!" This was Fagan's own response after watching his team play with a cool, calculating efficiency, every part functioning in balance and harmony, every player working for the collective results. There is little doubt that if history had not intervened, Joe Fagan could have gone on to win honours for many more seasons.

However as it was Fagan retired at the end of that second season as a direct result of the terrible tragedy of Heysel. After securing a place in a fifth European Cup final, and with a side tipped by all but the Juventus fans to win, he had every reason to be optimistic. But after the appalling crowd violence and the meaningless deaths of Italian supporters in the crumbling and inadequate Heysel Stadium in Brussels, he retired.

If ever Shankly's quip about football being more important than life and death had ceased to be funny, it was now. Fagan was deeply upset by the events of that night and he went immediately retirement and has retained a low profile since.

He did the club a great service, and must therefore always be thanked for it.

Fagan continued to help out - often showing up at Melwood to offer his advice to Roy Evans, who was always happy to listen.

He died after a long illness in July 2001 at the age of 80.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Bob Paisley

Bob Paisley OBE MSc [Hon] Player (1945-54) and Manager (1974-83)

Date of Birth: 23.1.19

Birthplace: Hetton-le-Hole, Co Durham

Honours: 6 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS 1975-76, 1976-77, 1978-79, 1979-80, 1981-82, 1982-83
3 EUROPEAN CUPS 1976-77, 1977-78, 1980-81
3 LEAGUE CUPS 1980-81, 1981-82, 1982-83
1 UEFA CUP 1975-76
1 EUROPEAN SUPER CUP 1976-77
5 CHARITY SHIELDS 1974, 1976, 1977 (shared), 1980, 1982
6 MANAGER OF THE YEAR AWARDS 1975-76, 1976-77, 1978-79, 1979-80, 1981-82, 1982-83
RUNNERS UP League Championship - 1974-75, 1977-78 FA Cup - 1976-77 League Cup - 1977-78 European Super Cup - 1978 World Club Championship - 1981

HONOURS AS PLAYER:1 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 1946-47
1 FA CUP 1949-50*
* Received an FA Cup runners-up medal although he did not play in the final against Arsenal. He scored Liverpool's first goal in their 2-0 semi-final defeat of Everton and Liverpool asked the FA to strike a special medal for him.

PROFILE

BOB PAISLEY was a reluctant genius. He never wanted to go into management. But having been persuaded to take command of Liverpool he proceeded to surpass the achievements of every manager in the entire history of British football.
The humble son of the North East, always more at ease in the wings than on centre stage, was indisputably Manager of the Millennium. And as we approach the 21st Century perhaps his record will stand forever as a tribute to his towering feats.

Kenny Dalglish, Alan Hansen and Graeme Souness, the world class Scottish trio signed by Paisley and a threesome not given to hyperbole, unhesitatingly place him at the management summit.

"There was only one Bob Paisley and he was the greatest of them all," says Dalglish. "He went through the card in football. He played for Liverpool, he treated the players, he coached them, he managed them and then he became a director."

"He could tell if someone was injured and what the problem was just by watching them walk a few paces. He was never boastful but had great football knowledge. I owe Bob more than I owe anybody else in the game. There will never be another like him."

Hansen agrees, declaring: "I go by records and Bob Paisley is the No.1 manager ever."

While Souness salutes him thus: "When you talk of great managers there's one man at the top of the list and that's Bob Paisley."

Paisley's amazing collection of 19 trophies in nine seasons makes you rub your eyes in wonder. It is the supreme testimony to his magnificent response to what many believed was Mission Impossible..

...After all, ask pundits and public alike, how could anybody follow the legend of Shankly?

When Shanks dropped the bombshell and retired in July 1974 Paisley was the man Liverpool wanted to succeed him. He had been at Shankly's shoulder since the great Scot crossed the Pennines from Huddersfield to transform Anfield's fortunes in December 1959. And his own connection with Liverpool stretched back a further two decades to his arrival at Anfield as a 20-year old left-half on May 8, 1939 for a £10 signing-on fee and weekly wage of £5.

Paisley, born the son of a miner in the County Durham village of Hetton-le-Hole on January 23, 1919, had signed the transfer forms in the Sunderland board room after helping Bishop Auckland beat Willington 3-0 to lift the FA Amateur Cup. During his childhood, spent in a harsh economic climate, he had a talent for absorbing knowledge and advice. His widow Jessie recalls: "Bob always tried to remember what his headmaster told him. That if you speak softly people will try to listen to what you're saying. If you shout they're liable to walk away and not take it in."

Such homespun psychology would serve Paisley invaluably during his management years when Europe bowed to the stocky figure in a flat cap that belied a masterful football brain. Wartime service in Egypt and the western desert delayed Paisley's League debut as a Liverpool player until 1946-47 when he won the first of 10 championship medals in his various Anfield roles in a team that included Scotland and Great Britain star Billy Liddell and centre forward Albert Stubbins.

And despite being ready to leave the club after being dropped by the directors who picked the team for the 1950 FA Cup Final he played on to captain the side and hung up his boots after Liverpool's relegation in 1954 to become reserve team trainer. He also became a renowned, self-taught physiotherapist and Shankly's idiosyncratic apprehension, even fear, of injuries made Paisley's treatment room role even more crucial in their partnership of opposites, one often outrageously extrovert, the other happy in the background.

It was to Paisley, though, that Liverpool turned to follow Shankly. He needed much persuasion from the club and his family to take on the challenge at the age of 55. Finally, he agreed and exclaimed: "It's like being given the Queen Elizabeth to steer in a force 10 gale." But he steered it brilliantly even though he was disappointed with a championship runners-up spot in his first season. Borrowing a phrase from his other great sporting passion of horse racing, he said: "I was like an apprentice that ran wide at the bends."

But Liverpool galloped past a couple of winning posts the following season with a League title and UEFA Cup double. The championship was secured with a 3-1 win on a heady night at Wolves in the final league fixture while European success was clinched with a 4-3 aggregate win over Bruges.

It was the forerunner to a season climaxed by what Paisley termed "my perfect day" when he and his team lifted the European Cup for the first time with a 3-1 conquest of Borussia Moenchengladbach in Rome in May 1977. Four days earlier, having already retained the championship, his team had lost the FA Cup Final to Manchester United. But the gloom of Wembley was banished by Liverpool's sparkling display in the Eternal City, which Paisley had helped liberate in wartime.

The victory installed Paisley as the first English-born manager to lift Europe's greatest prize following the success of Scottish duo Jock Stein's Celtic in 1967 and Sir Matt Busby, captain at Liverpool when Paisley first arrived, with Manchester United in 1968.

As the celebratory champagne flowed Paisley, later honoured with an OBE, sat quietly in a corner of the team hotel and said: "I'm not having a drink because I want to savour every moment. The Pope and I are two of the few sober people in Rome tonight!"

The Roman carnival also heralded the end of Kevin Keegan's fine Anfield career in which he had forged a potent attack partnership with John Toshack. The England striker, who would go on to manage his country, departed for Hamburg.

But Paisley, revealing that his superb command of tactics was matched by his judgment of football talent, soon had Keegan's replacement at No. 7 lined up. He signed Kenny Dalglish from Celtic for £440,000, £60,000 less than the income from Keegan's transfer.

"There's never been a better bit of business than that," said delighted Anfield Chairman John Smith. Paisley's genius for team building had already been evident in his capture of Phil Neal, Terry McDermott, Joey Jones and David Johnson, his switch of Ray Kennedy from a powerful striker to a left midfielder who terrorised Europe and his use of David Fairclough as football's prototype "super sub". Paisley, aware he was not the greatest orator, would say: "I let my side do the talking for me." It did with deafening volume thanks to a litany of Paisley recruits including Hansen, Souness, Alan Kennedy, Ronnie Whelan, Ian Rush, Craig Johnston, Mark Lawrenson, Bruce Grobbelaar and Steve Nicol.

And he soared into the stratosphere of managerial achievement by guiding Liverpool to two further European Cup triumphs, at Wembley in 1978, overcoming Bruges, and in Paris three years later when Real Madrid were put to the sword.

Paisley's teams annexed a total of six championships, the most remarkable being in 1978-79 when they emerged with a record 68 points under the old two-points-for-a-win system, conceded a record low 16 goals in their 42 games, scored 85 and lost only four times. He also guided Liverpool to a hat-trick of League Cup successes, failing only to land the FA Cup. But that gap in his collection was bearable given his torrent of triumph before passing on command to Joe Fagan in 1983, having amassed a grand total of 23 Bells Managerial Awards.

After retiring in 1983, he was elected to the board of directors and was an advisor to Kenny Dalglish, Liverpool's first player-manager, before being tragically stricken with Alzheimer's Disease.

Bob Paisley and his deeds were summed up perfectly by Canon John Roberts at his funeral service at St. Peter's, Woolton in February 1996 when he saluted him as an ordinary man of extraordinary greatness. The world of football, not least Liverpool FC, was enriched by his massive and exemplary contribution to it. On Thursday 8th April 1999 Liverpool FC officially opened The Paisley Gateway as an enduring monument to this great man.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Bill Shankly

Bill Shankly OBE Manager (1959-74)

Date of Birth: 2.9.13

Birthplace: Glenbuck, Ayrshire

Honours: 3 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS 1963-64, 1965-66, 1972-73
2 FA CUPS 1964-65, 1973-74
1 UEFA CUP 1972-73
1 SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP 1961-62.
3 CHARITY SHIELDS 1964 (shared), 1965 (shared), 1966
RUNNERS UP League Championship - 1968-69, 1973-74 FA Cup- 1970-71 European Cup Winners Cup - 1965-66 Charity Shield - 1971

PROFILE

It's a sobering thought. That a man of such humble origins can become a personality of such overpowering influence in the minds of millions of others. Such power, in misguided hands, can lead to unpalatable scenarios, and the twentieth century has witnessed such tragedy far too often. We must be thankful that Bill Shankly possessed neither the political nous, nor the latent evil of a Hitler or a Stalin.
Born into a family of ten in the Ayrshire mining village of Glenbuck, where conditions were harsh, Shankly was however certainly subjected to the workings of grass roots politics. Keir Hardie, one of the founding members of the Labour party, was chipped from the same Ayrshire coal seams, but for Bill, whilst never losing sight of his humanitarian socialism, football not politics was to be the life's devotion.

Like 49 of his fellow villagers straddling the latter part of the 19th and the early years of the 20th century, Shankly became a professional footballer. Football in Glenbuck was the elixir of life, a blessed relief from the toil of the mineshaft. In 1932 he signed forms with Carlisle United and, within a year, had moved onwards and upwards to Deepdale, home of Preston North End. A distinguished playing career at wing-half that brought 7 caps for Scotland was cruelly interrupted by war in 1939. When the 1946-47 season kick-started organised professional football again in England, Shankly was 33 and rapidly coming to the end of his playing days. He decided quite simply that he would become the greatest football manager of all time.

However, by the time the chairman of Liverpool, T.V. Williams appointed Shankly manager of the club in December 1959, Bill had been a manager for over a decade with precious little in the way of success. He had started his managerial career at the club which had given him his chance in professional football 17 years earlier, Carlisle United. A roller coaster trip of northern clubs took him to subsequent spells at the helms of Grimsby, Workington and finally Huddersfield, where he granted a debut to an upcoming 16 year old called Dennis Law. Disappointingly, Shankly appeared prone to falling foul of the boardroom at each of these clubs as he never felt they gave the same commitment to team affairs as he did. He had walked out on Carlisle, and Grimsby citing a lack of financial commitment on the part of the directors and often felt exasperated by people who simply didn't share his passion for the game. It was Shankly's own commitment and enthusiasm that had first intrigued T.V. Williams years earlier when Bill had been interviewed for the vacant Liverpool job in 1951. Back then, it was felt he wasn't a big enough name for the club, and somewhat lacking in experience, but this time Williams knew instinctively that Shankly and Liverpool were right for each other.

It's hard to understate the ordinariness of Liverpool's position in 1959. Languishing in the old second division, with a crumbling stadium, poor training facilities and a large unwieldy playing staff, the challenge facing Shankly was enormous. He dispensed with the services of 24 members of the playing staff. Liverpool's, and his, good fortune, was that in Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan, and Reuben Bennett, the club had an experienced and resourceful backroom staff. He wasn't about to dispense with them. The addition of Shankly was the catalyst they needed to grow and blossom into their natural roles at the club. Slowly at first, and then with a gathering pace, Shankly and his backroom team turned Liverpool around. The legendary 'Boot-Room' was born. The Anfield crowd sensed the change. Gates regularly topped 40,000 and promotion was quickly gained back to the first division. Shankly had rebuilt the club around two key players he brought in, both Scotsmen - Ron Yeats and Ian St John. The Reds romped away with the Second Division title in 1961-62, finishing 8 points clear of their nearest rivals and amassing a stunning - in days of two points for a win - 62 points and scoring 99 goals in the process.

The supremacy of Everton in the city of Liverpool was the first target for Shankly now that he had got the club back into the top flight and in season 63-64, Everton handed over the league championship trophy to their neighbours as Liverpool clinched their 6th title. Battle was joined, and between them, Liverpool and Everton did as much the Beatles and Gerry and the Pacemakers to put Liverpool on the world map in those fab years of the mid 1960s.

The training ground at Melwood, in a terrible state in 1959, was transformed into a top class training facility. Shankly introduced the five-a-side games that so defined his football thinking. Pass and move, keep it simple, a creed taken from the daily matches played by the miners of Glenbuck all those years ago. He introduced a new routine whereby the players would meet and change for training at Anfield and then board the team bus for the short trip to Melwood. After training, they would all bus back to Anfield together to shower and change and perhaps get a bite to eat. This way Shankly ensured all his players had warmed down correctly and he would keep his players free from injury. Indeed, in the 1965-66 season, Liverpool finished as champions using just 14 players and two of those only played a handful of games.

The first F.A. Cup win in 1965 was followed by magical European exploits across the continent as Liverpool established a passing style that became the envy of the watching football world. Amidst all this, stood Shankly, orchestrating events at Anfield, at one with the fans. He was perfectly in tune with the Kopites, knowing and understanding how they felt about football and the pride a successful team gave them. And always, he would remain in touch with his working class roots. His would tell anyone who cared to listen that his lads played to a socialist ethic. If a player was having a poor game Shankly would expect a team mate to cover for him and bail him out like you would do for a neighbour or a colleague down the mine. All for the greater good of the team. The fans on the Kop understood the simple philosophy.

The decline of the great 60s team saw the birth of Shankly's second great Liverpool side. Out went Hunt, St.John, Yeats and Lawrence, and in came Keegan, Heighway, Lloyd and Clemence. Success followed success. A first European trophy in 1973 ( the UEFA cup ) was won in tandem with the club's 8th league title. In 1974, the F.A. Cup came back to Anfield after a breathtaking Wembley performance against a hapless Newcastle United. Then came the shock resignation, on a July day in that summer of '74. Shankly was 60, and wanted to spend time with his wife Ness and their family. That he left the club in such capable hands speaks volumes for the man. The bootroom staff, now joined by ex-players Ronnie Moran and Roy Evans, got behind new manager Bob Paisley and the club went on to even greater glories in the years that followed.

There is no doubt that Paisley's era as manager was more fruitful than Shankly's in terms of trophies won. Also, it seems fair to speculate that much of what Shankly achieved would not have been possible without Bob Paisley's calm influence and knowledge of the game. But it is equally likely that without the driving force and sheer charisma of Shankly, Liverpool's spell in the doldrums in the 1950s would have reached long into the 60s and perhaps even further and Bob Paisley may never have become manager at all. That the club contrived to bring them together at all in those dark post war days, the fans will be forever grateful.

The city of Liverpool was shocked when Bill Shankly died unexpectedly in September 1981 after suffering a heart attack. His good friend Sir Matt Busby was so upset when he heard the news that he couldn't even answer the telephone that morning. In the years following his resignation, to the disbelief of the fans, relations between him and the club he so loved had become somewhat strained. There was no such problem on the terraces. In the first game at Anfield following his funeral, a huge banner was unfurled on the Kop which read 'Shankly Lives Forever'. Perhaps the differences between Keir Hardie and Bill Shankly were only slight after all. Both had achieved immortality through their brand of socialism. One through the ballot box, the other through the turnstile.

His spirit lives on at Anfield to this day, where a statue to the great man stands before his beloved Kop and the Shankly Gates bear the immortal words "You'll never walk alone". Certainly Shankly never walked alone and he is revered by all Liverpool supporters to this day.

This was no better demonstrated than on 18th December 1999 when the 40th anniversary of Shankly's arrival at Anfield was celebrated in a manner that took the breath away. Nearly the whole of the 1965 and 1974 F A Cup winning teams reassembled to view the exhibition commemorating Shankly and then paraded onto the pitch, where they stood in silence as two bagpipers played "Amazing Grace".

12,000 voices on the Kop gently sang the word 'Shankly' to the tune as they held up a mosaic bearing his face and the Saltire. The version of "You'll Never Walk Alone" that followed rivaled any previously heard before. His spirit and his legend is clearly set to live on well into the new Millennium.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Phil Taylor

Phil Taylor Player (1935-53) and Manager (1956-60)

Birthplace: Bristol

Honours: 1 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 1946-47 (as player)

The ever adaptable Phil Taylor has an unfortunate place in the Anfield history books. As well as being Bill Shankly's predecessor - and thus very much in the background - Taylor is the only Liverpool boss never to manage the team in the top division.

Taylor had signed for Liverpool for £5,000 from Bristol Rovers in March 1936, and later took over the captaincy of the team under Don Welsh. He was a cultured, intelligent and charming man, well liked and respected by his team mates and the fans. His football was thoughtful and creative and he seemed the ideal choice to take charge of the team after the sacking of Don Welsh.

PROFILE

He immediately entered the transfer market and brought in Alan A'Court, Tommy Younger and Ronnie Moran - who became an inspirational captain and started his phenomenal 50 year service to the club - but his teams never achieved the consistency that would enable their promotion back to the top flight. After a rocky start to the 1959-60 season, Taylor resigned in November admitting that "the strain of trying to win promotion has proved too much."
After a superb 23 years at the club a sorrowful Phil Taylor spoke to the Liverpool Daily Post about his decision: "No matter how great has been the disappointment of the Directors at our failure to win our way back to the first division, it has not been greater then mine. I made it my goal. I set my heart on it and strove for it with all the energy I could muster. Such striving has not been enough and now the time has come to hand over to someone else to see if they can do better."

Likeable, honest and charming, Phil Taylor can at least have the satisfaction of knowing that his successor was no less than Bill Shankly, and he DID do better!

1st team games: 345

1st team goals: 34

International caps: 3 (England)

Other clubs: Bristol Rovers

Birth Place: Bristol

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Don Welsh

Don Welsh : Manager (1951-56)

Ill health had forced George Kay to retire as Liverpool's manager early on in the year and so pave the way for Don Welsh to replace him.

This was not the first time the former Charlton and England inside left had served the club. He guested for the Reds during the war in the 1939/40 season. Although a brief spell, he had been accepted as a Liverpool player just the same.

When Welsh joined from Charlton, he had a big problem. The defence was solid but the attack was ageing. He splashed out - spending more than 50,000 pounds on the likes of Bimpson and A'Court - but could not stop the inevitable slide towards Division Two.

PROFILE

In 1954 Don Welsh became the first manager to put Liverpool through relegation for over 50 years. Unfortunately, that day also saw Everton promoted back to Div 1. He had almost accomplished that feat the season before finishing 17th, and only a scrappy win over Chelsea on the last day of the season kept Liverpool up. Liverpool would stay in Div 2 for eight more seasons.
On Christmas Day 1955, Welsh signed Charlton pair Frank Lock and Jonny Evans. As there were no newspapers over the Christmas period, the first the fans knew anything was when the team list was announced over the tannoy on match day.

Liverpool came near to going back up again in 1955-56, but Welsh was dismissed before he could have another go at getting promotion. It was becoming obvious that Liverpool were going nowhere. The following year, after accepting his part of the blame, Welsh was sacked as Liverpool manager. The only Liverpool manager to ever be sacked, he died in 1990, aged 78.

Welsh's Record:

Div 1 1951-52 43 points 11th place 1952-53 36 points 17th place 1953-54 28 points 22nd place

Div 2 1954-55 42 points 11th place 1955-56 48 points 3rd place

Thanks to Iain Hamilton for his contribution to this profile.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - George Kay

George Kay: Manager (1936-51)

Other Clubs as Manager : Southampton

Honours: 1 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 1946-47
1 LANCASHIRE SENIOR CUP 1946-47
1 LANCASHIRE COUNTY COMBINATION CHAMPIONSHIP CUP 1946-47
RUNNERS UP FA Cup - 1949-50 (Semi-Finalists - 1946-47)

Other clubs: Player - Bolton Wanderers, Belfast Celtic, West Ham United
As a player George Kay began his career with three appearances for Bolton in 1910/11 before becoming the first Englishman to captain an Irish League club when he skippered Belfast Celtic. He then returned to England in 1919 to become a key part of West Ham United's defence and skippered 'The Hammers' in the famous 'White Horse' FA Cup Final of 1923.

PROFILE

Kay, a deep - even introspective - thinker, joined Liverpool after five years in charge of Southampton and as manager signed the player widely regarded as Liverpool's greatest ever, Billy Liddell. Furthermore he signed a very young Bob Paisley from Bishop Aukland, for which supporters of the club should be eternally grateful. He also stole the legendary Albert Stubbins from Everton who were about to sign the gifted forward.

Kay guided 'The Reds' to a championship in 1946-47, with a unique 'quadruple' achieved with the Liverpool Senior Cup taken in a final against Everton, and two other local cups. Much of his managerial career at Anfield was interrupted by the war and he may have achieved even more if it were not for this debilitating intrusion.
He has been unfairly overlooked by the awesome achievements of Shankly and his protege Paisley, but in fact he was remarkable and able manager and nearly achieved the prize most desired by the Club, the FA Cup, in 1950 in a close game won ultimately by Arsenal.

He brilliantly planned his assault on the first post-war championship by taking the team on a trip to the USA and Canada, where against mediocre opposition, but with tremendous support, he gave his team time to gel and, very significantly feast on unrationed food in copious quantities. His team, fit, healthy and buoyed by ten wins in ten games managed to stand the strain of a season that only ended in July after a harsh winter delayed fixtures for weeks on end.
Another far from healthy man, Kay died a premature death in 1965. His death prompted Billy Liddell to say: "If ever a man gave his life for a club, George Kay did so for Liverpool."

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - George Patterson

George Patterson Secretary/Manager (1928-36)

George Patterson's playing career was an undistinguished one spent at Marine FC, where he gained his footballing experience netting seven goals in the 1907-08 season in the Zingari League playing the likes of Brombrough Pool and Halebank Athletic.

He came to Anfield in 1908 and worked first as an assistant to Tom Watson. On Watson's death he became club secretary and then combined this post with the job of manager between 1928 and 1936. His period as manager was undistinguished, despite some fine footballers in an attractive squad - 5th place in the league in 1928-29 being about as good as it got. He eventually resigned as manager because of the strain it was putting on his health although he continued as club secretary and regularly attended matches up to his death in 1955.

PROFILE

Whilst success eluded Patterson, who was lacking the level of experience that a Club like Liverpool deserved, he was a very shrewd dealer in the transfer market, bringing the likes of Matt Busby and Phil Taylor to Anfield.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Matt McQueen

Matt McQueen: Player and Manager (1923-28)

Honours: 1 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 1922-23*
* Took over as manager near end of season with Liverpool already top of the League.

Matt McQueen had played 150 times for Liverpool after coming to Anfield in 1892 as one of the original 'Team of the Macs'. He was probably the greatest 'all-rounder' the Club has and will, ever know. In his time at Anfield he played in every single position from 1 to 11, with
49 of his appearances being as a very creditable goalkeeper.

PROFILE

On his retirement as a player he became a referee and in 1918 was appointed a Liverpool director. He then stepped into the managerial hot seat when David Ashworth resigned and kept Liverpool on course for the 1922-23 League Championship.

Whilst on a scouting mission to Sheffield McQueen was involved in a road accident and he lost a leg. His health remained poor finally leading to his retirement in February 1928, although he kept strong links with the club. For many years afterwards he could often be seen sitting outside his no 32 Kemlyn Road house resting his artificial leg and welcoming the Liverpool Supporters as they arrived. His house now forms part of the site of the present Centenary Stand car park.

Apart from securing a valuable Championship title for the Club, he was also responsible for signing the legendary Gordon Hodgson for Liverpool - one of the highlights of the inter-war years at Anfield.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - David Ashworth

David Ashworth: Manager (1920-23)

Other Clubs as Manager : Oldham Athletic, Stockport County, Manchester City, Walsall

Honours: 2 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS 1921/2, 22/3
RUNNERS UP Charity Shield - 1922

David Ashworth was a former referee who later moved into a career in football management. He was apparently a very small man, only about five foot according to some accounts, with a carefully manicured, waxed moustache. He became the first manager of Oldham Athletic Football Club in 1906, moving to manage Stockport County in 1914 and staying with them through the First World War.

PROFILE

In 1920 he was appointed manager of Liverpool and in his first season in charge he guided them to their second successive season in 4th place. Two Derby wins over Everton in the autumn had knocked the stuffing out of the Blues' title challenge, but just two wins in their last 10 games meant that Liverpool failed to maintain their own momentum. They finished 8 points behind the Champions Burnley.

The following season, 1921/22, Ashworth lead Liverpool to their third League Championship. The season started badly with a 3-0 defeat at Sunderland, but after that they only lost one league game, away to Middlesbrough, until the middle of March. However, after that the team began to stutter, losing 4-0 at Oldham. Then, after beating Cardiff 5-1, they lost the away game against the same team 2-0. West Brom came to Anfield and won 2-1 leaving Liverpool with a tricky return visit to the Hawthorns to wrap up the title - they won 4-1 and the title went to Anfield.
Ashworth's Championship side was built around a strong defence with the Irish International Elisha Scott in goal and Ephraim Longworth, Tom Lucas and Don McKinlay sharing the full-back duties. McKinlay also played in a solid half-back line with Tom McNab, Tom Bromilow or Walter Wadsworth. Up front Harry Chambers was top scorer with just 19 goals, supported by Dick Forshaw, who scored 17, and winger Polly Hopkin, famous for the rarity of his goal-scoring.

This same team were well on their way to a second successive Championship the following season, when in February 1923 Ashworth left the table-topping side to return to Oldham, then bottom of the league. No-one has ever satisfactorily explained why Ashworth should decide to make such a bizarre move, although he presumably had some emotional attachment with his first club. It remains a mystery to this day. Oldham ended the season relegated, while Liverpool only won one of their last seven games, but still won the Championship by six points.

Ashworth only stayed with Oldham for about a year before moving to Manchester City, but he resigned in 1925 as the club struggled towards relegation. He next tried his hand in management with Walsall in 1926, but he lasted hardly any time there either, as he left in 1927. He also had a spell as a scout with Blackpool just before the War. He died in 1947, aged 79.

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - Tom Watson

Tom Watson: Manager (1896-1915)

Other Clubs as Manager : Sunderland

Honours: 2 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS 1900-01, 1905-06
1 LIVERPOOL SENIOR CUP 1900-01
RUNNERS UP FA Cup - 1914-15

Previously manager of Sunderland's 'Team of all Talents', where he won three first division championship medals for the club. Tom Watson was unquestionably one of the great figures of the early days of the Football League, and was a tremendous 'catch' for Liverpool. John McKenna was responsible for convincing this highly able man that his future lay at Anfield and his judgement was richly rewarded.

PROFILE

Watson twice brought the League Championship to Anfield and also took Liverpool to their first ever FA Cup final. One of Watson's finest signings was the fiery Scotsman Alex Raisbeck, who was widely held to be the finest Scottish international of his generation. Raisbeck's caps and a rare pink and yellow Scotland shirt reside in the Club Museum as testimony to this day.

Watson lived for at least part of his time as Secretary/manager of Liverpool at 106 Domingo Vale and then moved even closer to the ground in 1910 when he resided at 246 Anfield Road.
Watson worked hard for the war effort during 1914-15, encouraging 1 player, 2 directors sons and a great number of shareholders to enlist, and the playing staff donating 12.5% of their salaries to the war. Over £500 was collected at the ground and 18 footballs sent to the trenches to help morale, whilst servicemen were admitted for free into the ground.

Watson died in May 1915 and at his funeral took place on the 11th, the coffin was carried by Alex Raisbeck, Teddy Doig, Goddard, Wilson, Parry, Fleming and Robinson as well as the club trainer William Connell. He is buried at Anfield Cemetery.

Born: April 1859, Heaton Died: May 1915

PAST MANAGER PROFILE - John McKenna

John McKenna: 'Joint Manager' (1892-96)

Date of Birth: 1855

Other Clubs as Manager :

Honours: 2 SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIPS 1893-94, 1895-96

1 LANCASHIRE LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 1892-93

PROFILE

McKenna, although never actually holding the post of manager, took over the mantle from the founder of the club John Houlding and his duties included many of the tasks of a manager. 'Honest' John was one of the greatest driving forces for Liverpool throughout the early years. An Irishman, Tory, Freemason and friend of John Houlding (founder) - who started off as a grocer's errand boy - he would regularly visit Anfield before the split with Everton, and became an avid supporter of the football played there.

In 1892, 'Liverpool Association' were denied entry into the Football League by the F.A. This forced McKenna to guide Liverpool through the ranks of the Lancashire Association. Needing players and needing to prove a point, he turned to Glasgow and the Irish community for his contacts. On September 1st 1892, the day Liverpool were to play their first game on their new ground, the Liverpool Echo reported that, "The old Anfield ground will be occupied by the newly organized club known as 'Liverpool Association', and claim for it that no better game be witnessed on any other plots in the neighborhood". (Everton playing their first game at Goodison park that same evening against Bolton Wanderers). McKenna could not have had a better start to his new career, beating Rotherham Town 7-1.

Due to his trips north of the border, the first team he fielded, had no Englishmen. They were known as the team of 'Mac's', McBride, McQueen, McVean etc., eight in all. Almost a century later, when Liverpool completed their first double, again no Englishmen were fielded.

At the end of the first season, McKenna, also acting as secretary to the club, had written to the F.A. without anyone's knowledge, and requested election to the Football league. This was on the understanding that at least one of two financially stricken clubs, Accrington Stanley or 'Brutal' Bootle, would be stepping out.

McKenna's vision for the club was now apparent. Their first game saw them dispose of 'Boro 2-0 away. McKenna's struggle to make Liverpool the best in the land, found the club again pushing for promotion at the end of their first season. Due to the old test match system, and no automatic promotion, Liverpool found themselves in a play-off situation with last placed Newton Heath (Manchester United), who were comfortably beaten 2-0. First division status at last.

By the time Liverpool were relegated though, in 1895, McKenna was ruling things with W.E. Barclay, who seems to have acted more as Club Secretary. As Liverpool's first Secretary/Manager, he predicted that the club would only be relegated for one year. Liverpool became renowned for this display of fighting spirit, for years to come.

As McKenna's success flourished, so did the club's. He built a new stand for the fans and was a fierce critic of the maximum wage system. The club could quite easily afford to pay their players well and/or a lucrative bonus scheme. Unfortunately, his players had to seek additional employment or quit the game altogether.

In 1913, the Arsenal Chairman accused Liverpool (and 'Honest John') of match fixing. McKenna immediately demanded an inquiry by the F.A. and was later completely exonerated with deep apologies from the Gunners.

Unfortunately for John, later that year, four players were banned from the game for life, by the F.A. for alleged match fixing with Manchester United. This hurt McKenna deeply.

At the end of the war, the four Liverpool players had their sentences generously lifted by the F.A. as reward for their years of fighting. Given McKenna's earlier distress, three of the four players, Sheldon, Purcell and Miller, did actually play for Liverpool again. Miller even got capped for Scotland and after two more seasons at Anfield, got transferred to, of all clubs, Man Utd.

In 1915, McKenna handed over the chairmanship to W.R. Williams, but remained at the helm. By this time, McKenna was a well respected figure in Football, and quite rightly so.

"Honest" John McKenna had served Liverpool Football Club for over 40 years, he died in March of 1936. Like John Houlding, his friend and business partner before him, his coffin was carried through the city by three Liverpool players and three Everton players, a commemorative plaque to him remains in the foyer in Anfield.

The commemorative scroll and casket presented to him after a record 26 years as Football League President resides in the Club Museum.

Thanks to Iain Hamilton for the bulk of this profile.

How singing started on the Kop

In the autumn of 1962, although the country didn't know, it was about to be hit by an explosion of sound but the 'Mersey Sound' we're talking about was the sound of the Kop rather than the four mop tops from south Liverpool.

In the spring of 1962, Liverpool were promoted as Champions of Division Two back to the First Division and while The Beatles were about to change the music scene of the country, the Kop was busy changing football crowds forever.

The summer of 1962 saw for the first time extended coverage of the World Cup from another continent as the South American nation of Chile hosted the tournament. But whilst watching the football was different, so was listening to the Brazilian supporters who had made the short trip across their continent to back their side. Not only did they cheer in the time-honoured way but they also chanted! Now this was new and what they termed as the Samba Beat was suddenly heard in living rooms throughout the land. It was just a plain, "BRA-ZIL - Cha, Cha, Cha" or rather that's how it came across.

I remember thinking at the time; this will be heard on the Kop soon. Liverpool's first game of the new season was against Blackpool and over 51,000 turned up to fill Anfield almost to its limit, with nearly half the number congregated on the Kop. Everyone was there with their rattles and scarves all intent on making a noise when suddenly someone started to shout "LIVER-POOL" followed by what they called staccato clapping.

Pretty soon most of the Kop had picked up the chant and the sound of "LIVER-POOL - clap, clap, clap" hit the air and the chanting Kop was born.

Before long it seemed as if the entire Kop was participating in this new trend and from small acorns things quickly grow. The chanting Kop suddenly became a singing Kop and as Beatlemania hit the rest of the country, the Kop would perform impromptu sing-a-longs prior to each game as the latest top ten hits were belted out over the PA system. Singing to the hits of the local bands was one thing but the Kop had to be original.

One of the first songs that started to hit the airwaves was, 'When the Saints Go Marching In', better known today as 'When The Reds...', and by the time the 1963 season came to a close it was getting a regular airing on the Kop.

At the time it seemed as if the Kopites could take hold of anything and almost rearrange the words to suit within minutes. For fans everywhere else, it mattered not where you came from or who you supported, you copied the Kop.

Of course, other supporters sang songs and it wouldn't be in keeping with the Liverpool style to try and say that we were the first crowd to sing. However, we were the first crowd to sing as a matter of course.

Those who stood at Anfield in 1963 and sang along with the local group Gerry and the Pacemakers' 'You'll Never Walk Alone' could never have even begun to imagine what they were unleashing. The song would take on so many different meanings at so many different occasions. Occasions that were tragic but also occasions that were triumphant. It became a song that millions of football fans throughout the world would often sing but always recognise that it was 'The Liverpool Song'.

Here, in no particular order, are 10 undisputed Kop Classics.

1. You'll Never Walk Alone
2. Fields of Anfield Road
3. Liverbird Upon My Chest
4. Poor Scouser Tommy
5. When The Reds Go Marching In
6. L I V
7. Red & White Kop
8. Bill Shankly From Glenbuck
9. Underneath the Floodlights
10. Scouser in Gay Paris

Special thanks to John Pearman.

HEYSEL MAY 29TH 1985 : A DAY NEVER TO BE FORGOTTEN

At 3.06pm on April 15th each year, thousands of Liverpool fans all over the world take a moment or two out from their everyday lives to stop and remember the 96 supporters who died at the Hillsborough stadium disaster in 1989.

It's the saddest day of the year for many Liverpool supporters. However, it's not the only day when many fans stop for a moment to think of a large group of football supporters who went to a match only never to return.

If April 15th is the saddest day in the club's history, May 29th is surely the lowest. On May 29 1985, 39 football fans died when a wall collapsed at the Heysel stadium in Belgium. What should have been one of the greatest nights in the club's history turned into a nightmare.

Instead of leaving Brussels having seen our team lift a fifth European Cup, Liverpool supporters travelled back to England having witnessed the deaths of 38 Italians and one Belgian.

Liverpool had objected to the choice of ground to stage the final well before the friendly banter outside the stadium began to turn nasty inside. Aside from the fact that the stadium appeared to be crumbling, Liverpool's main concern was that there was to be a neutral section of the ground set aside for football fans from Belgium. The club argued that only Liverpool and Juventus should be allocated tickets. Setting aside a neutral area would only lead to both sets of fans being able to buy tickets off Belgium touts thus creating a dangerous mixed area. As history has since proved, this neutral area was soon filled with Italian supporters.

As tempers became frayed inside the ground about an hour before kick off, both sets of fans baited each other through a segregating fence made from chicken wire. After a sustained period of missiles being thrown by both sets of supporters, some Liverpool fans charged at their Italian counterparts and, as chaos took over, Juventus fans fled only for a wall blocking their escape to collapse on top of them. Thirty-nine football supporters died where they fell.

Later that night, Juventus won the European Cup 1-nil. It's a match nobody wants to remember.

Kenny Dalglish, Liverpool's greatest ever player, will never forget what happened in Belgium though.

"The fact that fatalities might result wouldn't have occurred to the Liverpool fans when they ran across."

Dalglish admits that it wasn't until the following morning that the Liverpool players finally realised exactly what had happened inside the stadium.

"We saw the Italian fans crying, and they were banging on the side of our bus when we left the hotel," he recalls. "When we left Brussels, the Italians were angry, understandably so; 39 of their friends had died. I remember well one Italian man, who had his face right up against the window where I was sitting. He was crying and screaming. You feel for anybody who loses someone in those circumstances. You go along to watch a game. You don't go along expecting that sort of ending, do you? Football's not that important. No game of football is worth that. Everything else pales into insignificance."

Almost 20 years after that terrible day, Liverpool and Juventus were drawn together again for the first time in the quarterfinals of the Champions League. It was if fate had brought the two teams together to join forces and honour those who had lost their lives at Heysel.

"There is a friendship between the two clubs and supporters," Liverpool Chief Executive Rick Parry revealed after the draw had been announced. "As soon as the draw paired us together for the first time in 20 years, memories of the Heysel Stadium disaster were naturally in people's minds, both in Turin and here on Merseyside. The two clubs built bridges and forged powerful links after Heysel. The bond between us remains strong, but we still want all Juventus fans to know that we are very sorry about the fact that 39 people lost their lives. We moved forward in a spirit of friendship after Heysel and the clubs continue to work together in a spirit of mutual respect."

May 29th remains a day of remembrance for both Juventus and Liverpool supporters.

In Memoria e Amicizia, in Memory and Friendship

Rocco Acerra
Bruno Balli
Alfons Bos
Giancarlo Bruschera
Andrea Casula
Giovanni Casula
Nino Cerullo
Willy Chielens
Giuseppina Conti
Dirk Daenecky
Dionisio Fabbro
Jacques François
Eugenio Gagliano
Francesco Galli
Giancarlo Gonnelli
Alberto Guarini
Giovacchino Landini
Roberto Lorentini
Barbara Lusci
Franco Martelli
Loris Messore
Gianni Mastrolaco
Sergio Bastino Mazzino
Luciano Rocco Papaluca
Luigi Pidone
Bento Pistolato
Patrick Radcliffe
Domenico Ragazzi
Antonio Ragnanese
Claude Robert
Mario Ronchi
Domenico Russo
Tarcisio Salvi
Gianfranco Sarto
Giuseppe Spalaore
Mario Spanu
Tarcisio Venturin
Jean Michel Walla
Claudio Zavaroni

Rest in Peace

LFC Quotes

1 "Some people believe football is a matter of life and death, I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that." Bill Shankly

2 "If Everton were playing at the bottom of the garden, I'd pull the curtains." Bill Shankly

3 "The trouble with referees is that they know the rules, but they don't know the game." Bill Shankly

4 "A lot of football success is in the mind. You must believe that you are the best and then make sure that you are. In my time at Liverpool we always said we had the best two teams in Merseyside, Liverpool and Liverpool reserves." Bill Shankly

5 "If you're in the penalty area and don't know what to do with the ball, put it in the net and we'll discuss the options later." Bob Paisley

6 "Liverpool was made for me and I was made for Liverpool." Bill Shankly

7 "Liverpool without European football is like a banquet without wine." Roy Evans




8 "Mind you, I've been here during the bad times too - one year we came second." Bob Paisley

9 "I hate talking about football. I just do it, you know?" Robbie Fowler

10 "Sometimes I feel I'm hardly wanted in this Liverpool team. If I get two or three saves to make, I've had a busy day." Ray Clemence

11 "Anyone who doesn't learn from Ian Rush needs shooting." Robbie Fowler

12 "Liverpool are magic, Everton are tragic." Emlyn Hughes

13 "I'd kick my own brother if necessary... it's what being a professional footballer is all about." Steve McMahon

14 "It was like playing in a foreign country." Ian Rush on his time with Juventus in Italy

15 "I said to Kevin (Keegan), 'I'll go near post' and he replied, 'No, just go for the ball.'" Tommy Smith

16 "Anybody who plays for me should be a bad loser." Graeme Souness.

17 "It's best being a striker. If you miss five then score the winner, you're a hero. The goalkeeper can play a blinder, then let one in… and he's a villain." Ian Rush

18 "Of course I didn't take my wife to see Rochdale as an anniversary present, it was her birthday. Would I have got married in the football season? Anyway, it was Rochdale reserves." Bill Shankly

19 "They compare Steve McManaman to Steve Heighway and he's nothing like him, but I can see why - it's because he's a bit different." Kevin Keegan



20 "Bruce Grobbelaar will play on until he is 40 - and at the top level." Bruce Grobbelaar

21 "He's better than Brian Lara because he's 600 not out. What a guy." Roy Evans on Ian Rush's 600th appearance for Liverpool

22 "Should the aggregate score be level after 90 minutes, extra time will be played." Fulham's matchday programme for the second leg of the Littlewoods Cup tie in 1986-87. Liverpool were 10-0 up from the first leg

23 "There are those who say maybe I should forget about football. Maybe I should forget about breathing." Gerard Houllier

24 "Nobody likes being criticised, particularly by players who will be in Disneyland this summer on their holidays rather than the World Cup in Japan." Phil Thompson responding to criticism from Frank de Boer of Barcelona who said Liverpool were boring

25 "Son, you'll do well here as long as you remember two things. Don't over-eat and don't lose your accent." Bill Shankly to Ian St John

26 "If you are first you are first. If you are second you are nothing." Bill Shankly

27 "Don't worry Alan. At least you'll be able to play close to a great team!" Bill Shankly to Alan Ball after he signed for Everton

28 "Shanks was the father figure but Roger Hunt was something special. It might sound daft but just picking up his sweaty kit gave me satisfaction.” Phil Thompson

29 "As Arnold Schwarzenegger said, 'I'll be back." Gerard Houllier

30 "There is no way the second half can be as entertaining as the first." Alan Hansen during the UEFA Cup Final v Alaves with Liverpool leading 3-1 at half time

31 "We don't have any splits here. The players country is Liverpool Football Club and their language is football." Gerard Houllier

32 "It's there to remind our lads who they're playing for, and to remind the opposition who they're playing against." Bill Shankly about the 'This is Anfield' plaque

33 "Just go out and drop a few hand grenades all over the place son." Bill Shankly to Kevin Keegan

34 "It broke my heart to leave Liverpool." Kenny Dalglish

35 "Ay, here we are with problems at the top of the league." Bill Shankly suggesting to a journalist that Liverpool were in difficulties

36 "Where are you from?" "I'm a Liverpool fan from London." "Well laddie, what's it like to be in heaven?" Bill Shankly to a Liverpool fan

37 "Yes Roger Hunt misses a few, but he gets in the right place to miss them." Bill Shankly to a reporter

38 "With him in defence, we could play Arthur Askey in goal." Bill Shankly after signing Ron Yeats

39 "Steve Nicol never gives more than 120 per cent." Kevin Keegan

40 "At Liverpool we never accept second best." Kenny Dalglish

41 "Bill was so strong it was unbelievable. You couldn't shake him off the ball. It didn't matter where he was playing, though I suppose his best position was outside-left. He could go round you, or past you, or even straight through you sometimes!" Bob Paisley on Billy Liddell

42 "We will beat them one day, I can promise you that!" Gerard Houllier on Manchester United



43 "If anybody thinks either myself or my team are afraid of Liverpool, they can think again. I believe I've got a team that can go out and do the business against them." Coventry manager John Sillett before a match with Liverpool in 1987. Liverpool won 4-1 with Sillett declaring them champions elect in August.

44 "For me Liverpool can have Everton's title right now! Everton are good but Liverpool are better. They are the best in England – the side we can all learn from." Coventry boss John Sillett on Liverpool's title chances after Kenny Dalglish's new look team's second match of the season. Sillett was to be proved right as the 1987-88 Reds side of course went on to win the league

45 "You can't build a cathedral in a day. A look at the club's history tells you these things take time." Gerard Houllier

46. Barnes did what we expected him to do. He made a goal, scored one, and entertained. You remember that." Kenny Dalglish after John Barnes Anfield debut for Liverpool in a 2-0 win over Oxford in 1987

46 "He couldn't play anyway. I only wanted him for the reserve team!" Bill Shankly upon hearing Celtic's Lou Macari had snubbed Liverpool in favour of a move to Manchester United."

47 "Laddie, I never drop players, I only make changes." Bill Shankly to a journalist who criticised his team selection

48 "I don't believe everything Bill tells me about his players. Had they been that good, they'd not only have won the European Cup but the Ryder Cup, the Boat Race and even the Grand National!" Celtic manager Jock Stein on Bill Shankly

49 "We’ve got a lot of Cockneys in the team, but really, it doesn’t matter where they’re from – we’re all playing for Liverpool.” Robbie Fowler

50 "It's great grass at Anfield, professional grass!" Bill Shankly comparing the Anfield pitch to other grounds

51 "I owe Bob more than I owe anybody else in the game. There will never be another like him." Kenny Dalglish on Bob Paisley

52 "I go by records and Bob Paisley is the No 1 manager ever!" Alan Hansen.

53 "Liverpool wouldn't be the club it is today without Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley and the players who played there. When I first went there it was a typical Second Division ground and look at it now!" Ian Callaghan

54 "If Shankly was the Anfield foreman, Paisley was the brickie, ready to build an empire with his own hands." Tommy Smith

55 "I was Bob's first signing. He changed my life, as he did so many others. He gave us great memories and you can't put a price on that. He made me an adopted scouser." Phil Neal

56 "Bob's knowledge of players and the game in general is unsurpassed. Football has known no equal in management or prize-winning, but his modesty and dignity were overwhelming as he led this club from one triumph to another. His name will always be synonymous with Liverpool." Liverpool chairman David Moores on Bob Paisley

57 "Hold on a minute, John Wayne hasn't arrived yet." Bill Shankly to the awaiting TV crews and journalists for the press conference to announce he was retiring from football

58 "Liverpool had such a marvellous group of players. It was no surprise the trophies kept coming." Kenny Dalglish

59 "I may have left Liverpool but the city and club will always be part of me." Kenny Dalglish

60 "If Liverpool had waited until the summer, and then asked me to go back as manager, I would have gone back." Kenny Dalglish, having had time to reflect on standing down as Liverpool manager in 199

61 "He was the greatest person I know." Ron Yeats on Bill Shankly

62 "I always carry a picture of him, he comes into my conversation a lot; I learned a lot from him and owe the man a great deal." Kevin Keegan on Shankly

63 "The difference between Everton and the Queen Mary is that Everton carry more passengers!" Bill Shankly

64 On awaiting Everton's arrival for a derby game at Anfield, Bill Shankly gave a box of toilet rolls to the doorman and said: "Give them these when they arrive – they'll need them!"

65 "If Shankly had been paid overtime, he'd have been a millionaire." Tommy Docherty on Bill Shankly

66 "He's better than Platini, certainly better than Rumminegge and Maradona. For me he is the greatest footballer in the world." Graeme Souness on Kenny Dalglish


67 "I used to stand on the Kop when I was here in 1969. The atmosphere and passion on the pitch as well as the terraces was intoxicating and Liverpool became part of me from that day on." Gerard Houllier

68 "Our job is to make the fans happy. When we win, 45,000 people go home happy. When we lose, it not only affects them, it affects their cats." Gerard Houllier

69 "We don't destroy our heroes today when we worshipped them yesterday." Gerard Houllier.

70 'The only pleasure I take is that the fans are happy with the team. But I don’t believe in anything other than my team." Gerard Houllier.

71 "I notice a former captain of ours said recently that this squad is so good that we don’t need a manager. I took this as a great compliment. He must have changed his mind since leaving as he said at the time that Phil Thompson and I would drag the club down. On that point I suppose he was right - we dragged the club down to Cardiff three times in the last 10 months." Gerard Houllier referring to comments made by Paul Ince

72 “We scored 127 goals - the third highest total in the club's history. Although, if you believe everything you read in the papers, 126 probably came from a breakaway from the edge of our penalty area. The other one was probably an own goal.” Gerard Houllier

73 "Liverpool players must play like a lion, give his all. There must be determination, commitment and resolve to be a Liverpool player." Gerard Houllier

74 "These players are my true heroes." Gerard Houllier

75 "Players have responsibilities, because, whether they like it or not, they are public figures. They have to be aware that the people who come to the ground spend fortunes in relation to what they earn." Gerard Houllier

76 "When I see the Bill Shankly statue, I look at the sentiment on the base. It says: 'He made the people happy’. Well now the modern Liverpool is making the fans and the city happy. And that makes me so proud." Gerard Houllier

77 "To me, the team is more important than any individual member of the squad, and the players have to realise that and accept that my priority is to pick a side with the best possible chance of winning each match." Gerard Houllier

78 "I want to keep an English heart to the team. I believe in that. Michael Owen is that. Never think Michael is afraid of anything." Gerard Houllier

79 "At a football club, there's a holy trinity - the players, the manager and the supporters. Directors don't come into it. They are only there to sign the cheques". Bill Shankly on boardroom meetings

80 "I'm just one of the people who stands on the kop. They think the same as I do, and I think the same as they do. It's a kind of marriage of people who like each other." Bill Shankly on the fans

81 "If he isn't named Footballer of the Year, football should be stopped and the men who picked any other player should be sent to the Kremlin" Bill Shankly on Tommy Smith

82 "It was the most difficult thing in the world, when I went to tell the chairman. It was like walking to the electric chair. That's the way it felt." Bill Shankly on the leaving of Liverpool

84 "The only thing I fear is missing an open goal in front of the Kop. I would die if that were to happen. When they start singing 'You'll Never Walk Alone' my eyes start to water. There have been times when I've actually been crying while I've been playing". Kevin Keegan

85 The goal looked as big as the Mersey Tunnel." Ian St John after his winning goal in the 1965 FA Cup Final against Leeds.




86 "If a player is not interfering with play or seeking to gain an advantage, then he should be." Bill Shankly on the off-side rule

87 "Take that bandage off. And what do you mean about YOUR knee? It's Liverpool's knee!" Bill Shankly to Tommy Smith, who had a bandage on his injured knee

88 “Ladies and Gentlemen, yesterday at Wembley we might have lost the Cup but you the Liverpool people have won everything. You have won the admiration of the policemen in London and you have won the admiration of the public in London." Bill Shankly after losing the FA Cup in 1971 to Arsenal

89 "Chairman Mao has never seen a greater show of red strength." Bill Shankly

90 "It is our fifth trophy in just a matter of months and that shows what can be achieved when you have a united team who have great trust in each other." Gerard Houllier after Liverpool won the Super Cup in Monaco

91 "This was a special atmosphere only Anfield can produce. This was St Etienne part two and the fans cheered every tackle and it's one of the greatest nights in this football club's history." Phil Thompson after Liverpool's 2-0 victory over Roma in the Champions League 2002

92 "I will never forget today and I want to thank all the fans who gave me such a great ovation. They were immense. I thought I would get a decent reception but that surpassed all my wildest dreams. That sort of ovation is normally reserved for players who have won European Cups for a club. It was a brilliant day and it was nice to hear the Kop's humour at its best again when they were telling me to go back to Coventry." Gary McAllister after his last game for Liverpool at Anfield

93 "Playing Roma in Rome in the European Cup final and scoring a penalty in the shoot out to help us win it. That was my very last kick for Liverpool and it doesn't really get any better than that." Graeme Souness

94 "We are the real people's club." Sammy Lee




95 "He has not changed his religion." Gerard Houllier to a reporter when asked if Nick Barmby would become a recluse following his move from Everton to Liverpool

96 "I used to hate Ian Rush when I was young, because I was a devout Evertonian in those days, and he seemed to score every time Liverpool played against us. It's strange to think he used to support Everton too when he was a kid. He was brilliant to me at Anfield always giving me good advice." Robbie Fowler

97 "I was once offered Eric Cantona at Liverpool." Graeme Souness admitting he turned down the chance to sign the Frenchman during his reign as Liverpool manager

98 "You may have found me mean and thirsty in my search for trophies, but the bad news is the man who is taking my place is hungrier than me. Fagan's the name and I don't think he'll need any help from the Artful Dodger!" Bob Paisley on Joe Fagan

99 "If you can't make decisions in life, you're a bloody menace. You'd be better becoming an MP!" Bill Shankly

100 "I just hoped that after the trials and tribulations of my early years in management, someone up high would smile on me and guide my hand. My plea was answered when we got Kenny Dalglish. What a player, what a great professional!" Bob Paisley


101 "Rafa is a magician, a master tactician and a wonderful man. He is a great man, make no mistake about that." LFC Chairman David Moores.
102 "We just want to bring more trophies to the club for these amazing fans. They are the best. We have got just the right man to do that in Rafa." LFC Chairman David Moores.

103 "Rafa has the feel of this club, he knows the history of the club and he loves the people. I tell you what, we have got a good man." LFC Chairman David Moores.

104 "Rafa has brought the European Cup back to Liverpool and there was no doubts in our minds whatsoever that he would bring success to the club." LFC Chief Executive Rick Parry.

105 "How could I leave after a night like that? It was the greatest night of my life." Steven Gerrard after winning the Champions League in Istanbul.



106 "It was reported that we'd have 20,000 fans out here but there was much more than that. They are unbelievable and I dedicate this victory to them. We were a different team in the second half but by extra time we were running on empty and I'll admit were playing for penalties at the end." Steven Gerrard after winning the Champions League in Istanbul.

107 "I wanted to show everybody that I'm still a good footballer, that I still have something to say. I think I have succeeded with that goal and that penalty. It wasn't a nice view at half time, but we wanted to get a goal for our fans as we didn't want them to be sad. I'm spellbound by it all, this is maybe the greatest moment in my career." Istanbul hero Vladimir Smicer.

108 "They have done the city proud, they performed brilliantly and I always knew they were going to win. I was proudly wearing my scarf in No 10." Prime Ministers wife and Liverpool fan Cherie Blair after seeing the Reds win the Champions League.

109 "Carra came up to me after extra time and said 'Remember Grobbelaar and the rubbery legs of 84 - and do the same. Dance, do anything, put them off'!" Istanbul hero Jerzy Dudek after his penalty saving heroics.

110 "My brother phoned me the morning after the game and asked me had I seen the match again? I said no and he said you need to see it because your save from Schevchenko was the hand of the God. I told him I didn't know how I did it." Jerzy Dudek.

111 "This is the best moment of my career. The final was one of the greatest moments for all of us. We enjoyed that very much." Istanbul hero Jerzy Dudek.

112 "We celebrated into the night and it was magnificent. We had a few drinks, well maybe a bit more than a few!" Jerzy Dudek after the epic Champions League win over AC Milan.

113 "It is one of the greatest finals of all time and the save Jerzy Dudek made from Shevchenko at the end was unbelievable. I can't believe we've won. He'll be a legend now, not just for the penalties but because of the Shevchenko saves in the game itself. They were unbelievable." Jamie Carragher on Istanbul hero Jerzy Dudek.

114 "This is the best moment in my professional career. I am a European champion, and I cannot believe it." Xabi Alonso on the feeling of becoming a Champions League winner.

115 "This is without doubt my biggest night in football. At half-time we needed to do something and decided to make some changes. The early goal helped and with the backing of our wonderful supporters we went on from there. There is no way we could have went back out and lost by four or five goals in front of them. Once we started thinking and believing we could do it, anything was possible. In extra-time I was very proud of my players." Rafael Benitez after the epic Champions League victory.

116 "As a manager you are important sometimes and you make mistakes, but the most important people are your staff and your players. Never call me the special one!" Rafael Benitez.

117 "When you see the supporters and how the club works it is like a religion to them. We will try to do our best to bring more trophies back for them." Rafael Benitez.

118 "I didn't sleep with the European Cup but it was in my room! It was just special and I just had to have the cup with me, lifting the cup as Liverpool captain was just the best moment of my life." Steven Gerrard on who he spent the night with after the Istanbul final.

119 "Managers have to be like actors at times and Rafa Benitez deserves an Oscar for his half-time performance in the dressing room during the Champions League Final. His half-time performance when all was lost in Istanbul was the most astonishing of the whole amazing night." Sir Bobby Robson saluting Rafael Benitez after Liverpool's victory in Istanbul.

120 "I went so mad that I must have had a bit of a blackout. I just crashed to the floor somewhere and I can't remember a single thing that was going on around me for a few moments. What I do remember as I was lying on the floor was starting to cramp up again!" Jamie Carragher recalls how he felt after Dudek saved the decisive penalty from Schevchenko in Istanbul.

121 "The English club proved that miracles really do exist. I've now made Liverpool my English team. They showed that football is the most beautiful sport of all. The Liverpool supporters didn't let me go to sleep the night before, there were 10 of them to every three Milan supporters. They showed their unconditional support at half-time when they were losing 3-0 and still they didn't stop singing." World Cup legend Diego Maradona who was cheering for Liverpool in Istanbul.

122 There's not one club in Europe with an anthem like You'll Never Walk Alone. There's not one club in the world so united with the fans. I sat there watching the Liverpool fans and they sent shivers down my spine. A mass of 40,000 people became one force behind their team. That's something not many teams have. For that I admire Liverpool more than anything." Dutch legend Johan Cruyff after Istanbul.

123 "What Rafa has done this season surpasses, without any doubt, what any other manager has done. Jose Mourinho has won the league for Chelsea in his first season and made a real impact in England. But it doesn't come even close to winning the European Cup in your first season. Now Rafa can go and tell any press conference he likes, as Jose did, that he's the true champion. Mourinho can't say that any more. So is Rafa the special one too? Well, he is to Liverpool fans." Jamie Carragher.

124 "We were sitting in the dressing room and we could clearly hear thousands of fans singing You'll Never Walk Alone. Can you imagine how that felt? We were 3-0 down in the Champions League final and all we could hear were 45,000 people letting us know they still believed in us. We knew they had endured a long journey and made so many sacrifices to be there. It was at that point we started to believe too." Luis Garcia on what inspired the amazing comeback in Istanbul.

125 "Liverpool's fans are just amazing. The best feeling I have at away games is Anfield. It is just incredible. I love it. You get goose bumps when you see their supporters sing You'll Never Walk Alone." Arsenal and France star Thierry Henry.

126 "When you have the best player in the world in your side then you know that anything is possible. I was just praying for somebody to do something special and Stevie came up trumps again. When the ball hit the net I felt like running over to him to give him a big kiss but then I decided against it! Gerrard is the best for me. He is still young, he's got everything in his game and he can do whatever he wants in football. It was just brilliant to win the final. The odds were against us at one stage but there's a great belief in this team now and we never believe we are beaten." John Arne Riise hails FA Cup hero Steven Gerrard.

127 "We've got a great team spirit - It doesn't matter how many goals we go down, we'll keep fighting till the end." Steven Gerrard.

128 "Honest to God, I'm so happy it's frightening! I'm just so chuffed - that's all I can say. Obviously since I have left, deep down I have always wanted to come back and it has been a long time but I'm glad to say I'm back now." Robbie Fowler on his return to Anfield.

129 "Ever since I started at Liverpool as a kid the fans have taken to me and any player will tell you when the supporters of your club are behind you then that helps an awful lot. I just can't thank them enough. They've given me so much support over the years and I'm grateful for that." Kop hero Robbie Fowler.

130 "He is our talisman - I mean you just can't replace him. Thank goodness everything was sorted out last year! Everything's settled down now and I know he will be with us for life. He's an unbelievable player and I wouldn't swap him for anyone. He has got everything and never ceases to amaze. He has been magnificent, different class." LFC Chairman David Moores on Steven Gerrard.

131 "I'd put Steven in the top five or six players in the world. In my opinion, I would say he was probably the best. I don't think anyone else could play for Liverpool and do more than he does." Jamie Carragher on Steven Gerrard.