02-10-2018, 13:52
In the eighties every year I`d see my club Man Utd sign some wondrous players "It must be our year", sadly for all their individual ability it never quite happened
Were Liverpool that good? Frankly yes, I hated them but you cannot deny the level of skill and teamwork those players had
Yet back then it wasn't Man Utd, Arsenal , Tottenham and certainly not Man City or Chelsea as their greatest threat but their neighbors
Howard Kendall came to manage the club he was so successful as a player in 1981 yet a 3-0 loss to Liverpool in December 1983 seemed to be the final straw and Kendall`s "Ta ra Fegie" moment, the sack seemed imminent.
That match like Fergie`s Crystal palace match was the turning point, Kendall instilled another club legend Colin Harvey as number two and slowly using the same one touch, two touch passing football as their neighbors Everton started to turn things around.
Despite in the past paying big money for players like forward David Johnson it was the young players who started to come good like Defender Kevin Ratcliffe, ex liverppol reserve winger Kevin Sheedy and forward Graeme Sharp, and rivalled only by Jim Leighton, Big Neville Southall in goal was possibly the best in the World at that time, yes better than Shilton, Dajasev, Zoff et al.
Adding often crocked midfielder from Bolton Peter Reid and ex UK most expensive player Andy Gray from wolves for a mere 250k, a forward who would put his head where defenders wouldn't were the missing pieces, adding experience to youth.
Whilst Liverpool name for name would look better on paper Kendall`s side won the league title tiwce, an FA cup and the cup winners cup, sadly unable to compete in the European cup due to the ban.
Kendall would twice return to Everton to manage but success was never again to happen, he was a manager who looked after his players and encouraged a drink to help team bonding
He would show belief in young players and recruit from lower leagues as well as bring in veterans like Reid, Gray and Paul Power who many thought past it, even nearly signed the UK`s first Brazilian player!
Were Liverpool that good? Frankly yes, I hated them but you cannot deny the level of skill and teamwork those players had
Yet back then it wasn't Man Utd, Arsenal , Tottenham and certainly not Man City or Chelsea as their greatest threat but their neighbors
Howard Kendall came to manage the club he was so successful as a player in 1981 yet a 3-0 loss to Liverpool in December 1983 seemed to be the final straw and Kendall`s "Ta ra Fegie" moment, the sack seemed imminent.
That match like Fergie`s Crystal palace match was the turning point, Kendall instilled another club legend Colin Harvey as number two and slowly using the same one touch, two touch passing football as their neighbors Everton started to turn things around.
Despite in the past paying big money for players like forward David Johnson it was the young players who started to come good like Defender Kevin Ratcliffe, ex liverppol reserve winger Kevin Sheedy and forward Graeme Sharp, and rivalled only by Jim Leighton, Big Neville Southall in goal was possibly the best in the World at that time, yes better than Shilton, Dajasev, Zoff et al.
Adding often crocked midfielder from Bolton Peter Reid and ex UK most expensive player Andy Gray from wolves for a mere 250k, a forward who would put his head where defenders wouldn't were the missing pieces, adding experience to youth.
Whilst Liverpool name for name would look better on paper Kendall`s side won the league title tiwce, an FA cup and the cup winners cup, sadly unable to compete in the European cup due to the ban.
Kendall would twice return to Everton to manage but success was never again to happen, he was a manager who looked after his players and encouraged a drink to help team bonding
He would show belief in young players and recruit from lower leagues as well as bring in veterans like Reid, Gray and Paul Power who many thought past it, even nearly signed the UK`s first Brazilian player!