Biblio

I can count myself very lucky to have seen him play in real life. When I was 9, my dad took me and my brother to see Everton play Moenchengladbach at Goodison in the European Cup. We were all Liverpool fans but Dad had lots of Evertonian friends and had helped to organise a trip to the first leg in Germany, which he also attended. We were very disappointed when Andy Rankin saved a penalty in the shoot off to put Everton through but it was a memorable experience. Berti Vogts was playing as well, great team they had.

...was the worst day of my life. I was at the 1985 European Cup Final between Liverpool and Juventus at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels. Looking out of the toilet window and seeing a line of dead bodies being covered with blankets by the police was an experience I wish I had never had. As soon as I saw it, I left the ground along with my brother. Some extremely kind Belgians let us into their flat to ring our parents, I will never forget their kindness and wonder if I would have allowed foreign people into my house in similar circumstances. We later bumped into a crowd of Italians in evident distress and then a minibus of Liverpool fans from Kirkby who had also left the ground in disgust. Some of them said that they could be classed as hooligans but were outraged at the fact that the Liverpool thugs that night had attacked scarfers and family fans. They believed that a fight should be between consenting thugs. Unfortunately, hooliganism can't always be contained in this way. We had travelled over from Liverpool on a coach, really good atmosphere and good people. On the way back the bus was silent, very depressing atmosphere. Nobody cared about losing the match, I think a lot of us saw the crassness of the regular regurgitation of Bill Shankly's quote about life and death (made in more innocent days)as being fraudulent. As I said at the start, it was the worst day of my life and also one of the most influential. Since that day I can count the number of major football games at major stadiums on one hand, it has been very difficult for me to face the thought of a big match live. Live football matches to me now mean non-league games with my daughter or low key matches abroad in Sweden, Finland or Iceland. Scotland, particularly Rangers, benefited from the English ban, but England and I think continental Europe suffered from the absence. Everton were never allowed to compete in the EC, something which aggrieves their fans and fuels a sense of bitterness towards Liverpool to this day. They had a very good team then and it was quite feasible that they could have gone on to win the trophy but never got the chance. We can see the problems that existed in Paris and Seville recently but thank God nobody was killed.

The better team won and it's not surprising really. The Bundesliga is a better league than the SPFL. Yes, I know that EF are below Dortmund and Red Bull but that's irrelevant really. If Rangers were in the EPL then it is possible that they could, in a one off situation, beat Liverpool and then Chelsea, only to lose in the next match to wolves and the following one to Newcastle, the one after to Southampton. Beating three German teams in one season is always unlikely. Having said this, this season has been a big success. It is not just about 'silverware', winning trophies is not the only criterion for success. To me, success is being involved until the very end of the season, until the last kick of the most important match. I dare say that his is not how many see it, particularly at the moment, but to me it is certianly true.

I don't actually think that players who are not on the pitch at the end of 90 minutes should be allowed to take a penalty. I'm not that bothered about losing on penalties, it is not a good way to win a trophy, one that would always need an asterix against it.

Even if he had cleared it they may have scored anyway. There is no way of knowing whether his mistake (and we all make mistakes at work) was the difference between a win and a draw.

https://www.youtube.com/c/LMCVlogs/videos This You Tube channel is great. It's run by a young Rangers fan and you can see his coverage of many of this season's games, including Thursday night. He does other teams as well, for example East Kilbride v Berwick Rangers, St Mirren v Dundee, Partick v ICT, Edinburgh semi-final and others. Well worth looking at.

The late Peter Osgood told a story about when Chelsea were playing Liverpool at Anfield and Ron Harris hammered Emlyn Hughes with a ferocious 'tackle'. Tommy Smith ran up to Harris with the whole crowd thinking he was warning him to behave himself or else. Instead, he said "I could get to like you Harris". Smith and Hughes detested each other.

You wouldn't think they would be that bothered about losing to a team that doesn't even have a name and has only been going 10 years and yet they seem so bitter. Very strange.

Exactly. Success cannot just be measured in terms of trophies. How many could we have expected to win in 2018? None is the answer, given the shambles that the club was in.The most important trophy is the one that he won, the cups are irrelevant really, nice to win but don't prove anything. As for next season, I don't think there is a clear alternative to van Bronkhorst at the moment and I can't see any other scenario than him being manager when the new season starts. We have to see what he can do from there, but however it goes there will always be another season. The lows are as much a part of things as the highs.

Was GVB only appointed because he was an ex-player? Looks like it.

Exactly. It is quite concerning that so many people believe that the presumption of innocence should be removed.

I don't think it is throwing in the towel, just an acknowledgement that they have the momentum and the team morale. These things are vital to have and we haven't got them at the moment. Hopefully that will change, but it's not surprising that people will feel a bit pessimistic at the moment.

It looks like it is in the script for them to go top after the OF.

John Sillett, former manager of Coventry City, also died today making it a very sad day for football. What he did for Coventry in the 1987 FA Cup was amazing and I am sure he will never be forgotten by the club's fans.

He came to Liverpool as a striker and was initially a bit disappointing in that role, especially when compared with John Toshack. Bob Paisley turned him into one of the best midfielders in Europe and, according to Paisley, was the player who attracted most interest from continental clubs. I saw most of his games at Anfield and, once he had settled in, I don't think I saw him have a bad game. He was a lot more consistent than the more glamourous players, Dalglish and Souness, and was highly influential in the success that Liverpool had during his time at the club.

A disappointing result to put it mildly, but when all is said and done the League Cup doesn't mean an awful lot. I know that there isn't a shop where you can do a trade in these results but I'd much rather beat them in the next league game, although admittedly that doesn't seem likely at this point in time.

How many consecutive matches is it now for going a goal behind?

Let's just imagine for a moment that Gerrard stayed. Come the new Year OF match, Celtic are only two points behind. They win the match to go top. Cue hysteria for sacking the manager from the same quarters which are currently decrying the lack of loyalty. This is exactly what would have happened but I doubt whether the people screaming for the sack would describe themselves as snakes

I was hoping that Lampard would take the Norwich job.

At least to start with Fergie could build and manage teams with little expenditure. Maybe Wenger also to some extent. But the others on the list are all cheque book managers. I have no doubt that Mourinho et al could turn Doncaster Rovers into world beaters but only if they were allowed their usual budget.

They are totally incapable of understanding reality and think that professional footballers and managers should not make decisions which they conceive to be in their best interest but should instead only seek to get the approval of the most narrow minded section of the fan-base.

If I had to pick one player who I would have loved to see score a hat-trick it is Sekala. Hope it really boosts his confidence and that it shows his detractors that things can sometimes be worth the wait.

I think it was a penalty according to the laws, but Kyogo should, at the very least, have been booked for play-acting. I also suspect he said something provocative to the Livi player. It is so funny that they thought they were getting a last minute winner to go top, only to see the goalie save it.

This season is seeming a bit like 1987-88.

Someone should contact the RSPCA about them attaching that little furry animal to that idiot's head.