Thanks to everyone who read the first blog and thanks for all the feedback I’ve received. After what turned out to be a heartbreaking cup final for me and The Reds, on Sunday I decided I had better start cracking on with my second blog.
I’m very lucky in the fact I’ve grown up following a team that have played in the best league and competitions in the world. Liverpool has been my team and always will be (we won’t talk about that final) but this week I’ve decided to go back to the first kit and team I remember as a child and one that had great success, Liverpool’s 2000/2001 Treble winning team.
The kit that year wasn’t for me the best but for me it will always remind me of being a six year old and those Saturdays and Sundays watching The Reds. The home shirt was red with white trimmings and white sponsors. It wasn’t trying to be fancy and that’s why it stood out, bold red and white, colours I’ve seen so many times from then on. The away shirt was one of my all time favourites and also the shirt I had – 8 Heskey – on the back, like I said I was a fan. The kit was basically the same style as the home kit, orange or gold whatever fence you sit on and a navy trimming. The socks and shorts for this kit were belters and often worn by a young me in the garden, Reebok played a blinder with our kits that season for me, they were both solid numbers and both stand out in my mind all these years later.
The Manager this year was Gerrard Houllier, he’d come in as joint manager to help Roy Evans in the 98/99 season. When does a joint manager ever work? Evans was down the job centre by November, leaving the club after a game against Valencia. The two managers had different views on football, Houllier was the first manager I remember he never seemed to shout anything on the touchline he left that to his assistant Phil Thompson a Liverpool legend and a champions league winning captain and he also has the honour of having a picture taken with me. He also had Sami Lee in that coaching team and I believe that to have helped him motivate that team, two former legends who’d won it all with The Reds and had local knowledge.
Liverpool had a belter little side this season which makes it hard for me to pick out just a few key players but I have to start with my favourite player that season and my first footballing hero, Michael Owen. Yes, I know his commentary is shockingly woeful and makes everyone debate pressing mute on a Saturday morning, but back then Owen had pace. He made Usian Bolt look slow and he just never stopped. He scored goals and he worked hard for the team, something a certain Mario didn’t dream of when playing for The Reds. Owen would go on to be named the European Footballer of the Year after this season, the first English player since Kevin Keegan and you can see why, he took over in the FA Cup Final vs Arsenal with 8 minutes to go , and all season when fit Owen was a beast in front of goal, making defenders look like Sunday league hopefuls. Owen injuries became a worry this season and would continue to worry him all his footballing career. Owen will forever be my first hero but the fact he left Liverpool to go to Real Madrid (we only got 8 million) in search of European glory and the fact we won it 10 months later proves the grass isn’t always greener at the Galacticos and the fact he went on to play for Manchester United means he’ll struggle to get a pint in a Liverpool pub any time soon. That said, for a lot of us he’s still that young lad who scored goals for fun, at Jamie Carragher’s testimonial match people booed and I couldn’t do that, to a player who gave so much this season, there’s a place in my heart for you Michael, next to Luis and Fernando.
Before I speak about anyone else, it’s only right I speak about this man. Steven Gerrard: an absolute sir to all of us following The Reds over the years, but this was his break out season for them, ending with the PFA Young Player Of The Year award, and you can see why he was just hungry for success even at this age. He bombs up and down the pitch and throws in some great tackles and scores some unbelievable goals. Gerrard shows what’s to come in the next few years after this season for me, and his skinhead is easily seen all over the pitch and was something I think most lads under the age of 20 had in Liverpool at the time, (me and my 3 brothers could also be seen repping it). Ten goals that season and a lovely rocket against Manchester United, a cracker vs the Gunners at Anfield and the goal of the season in front of The Kop vs Southampton.
With Jamie Rednapp out for the season, (when was he ever fit?), Liverpool needed someone to captain the side and two fellas did that job. One was Houllier’s best buy, and a hero of The Kop for years: Sami Hyypia. Signed for next to nothing, you’d most likely pay more for a pack of crisps and a Lucozade in the Spar, it was that cheap. Sami was a leader at the back, he was fantastic in the air whether it be attacking or defencing, he was a class act very calm which was needed a lot during this season as his centre back partner Stephane Henchoz had a habit of trying to give pen’s away and doing questionable footballing moves in the box. People say this was a great partnership but I think Hyypia was the better of the two, and definitely had the best footballing brain, that’s why he was a Liverpool player for a very long time, he won everything apart from a league title at Liverpool. Liverpool managed to keep a clean sheet over 180 minutes vs a very good Barcelona team that featured Rivaldo, Luis Enrique, and Patrick Kluivert in the semi-final in the Uefa Cup with Hyypia the leader of a back four with Henchoz, a free transfer, Marcos Babel who was solid and another great deal by Houllier. One of the best moves in the transfer market and a young Jamie Carragher, one of our own and one of the best filling in on the side when he was better suited to the centre of defence, how Liverpool went on to not let a goal in with a team of that quality shows how hard this back four was worked in training, and over the 180 minutes, some people said Houllier was “murdering” the game after the very defensive first leg at the Nou Camp, but you’re hardly going to go all out attacking at that ground. Liverpool also wore their third kit of the season here, an all white number with black trimming which would be the away kit worn the season after. Liverpool also wore the green away kit from the 99/00 season away at Bradford.
The other captain from this season is one of the best forwards to ever play for the club. Robbie Fowler was a local lad from Toxteth, my older brother had this season’s home shirt with 9 God on the back and when I asked what it meant he said ‘it’s Robbie Fowler he’s God’ and there’s no better compliment. He meant that much to the fans, one of your own playing week in week out, it’s great to see, so Jürgen if you’re reading, I play up front. Fowler loved playing for Liverpool you could just see it. His relationship with the manager wasn’t great and I believe that to be the reason Fowler didn’t play as much as he should in this season, but when he played he showed up. His goal in the last game of the season vs Charlton and his goal in the Worthington Cup Final is the type of goal you would try in your back garden but hit over the fence. He was a fantastic servant to the club. Liverpool hadn’t won anything for six years when this season started and Robbie was there for the last cup win and stayed through it all. He had big offers to move away and win more medals but he is rewarded for that after this year, you can win everything with a team but it won’t give you the same feeling winning for the team you supported as a boy.
I have to get rid of the elephant in the room Emile Heskey… as a good mate of mine Paddy told me in a secret location in The Old Swan the other day, “that season it wasn’t whose playing upfront with Owen and Fowler it was whose playing with Heskey”. A great player all season he scored more than Fowler (he did play more) and he seemed to be a great partner for Owen, it shows Liverpool’s team was strong when all three were in the England team at the time, (Sven always knew the score didn’t he?). Heskey was strong and very good in the air which worked well under Houllier’s style of play. He loved long balls which didn’t suit Fowler, Heskey again worked hard for the team and was still young and hungry for success. He played some lovely football in an early 3-2 win over Manchester City at Anfield, always looking like he would score in this game, and early on his hat-trick against Derby is first class. Heskey also had the best celebration by far with that dj-ing thing but he never really hit this form for The Reds again which is sad to think really, as he did have the quality to go down as a true great, I think he is forgotten too much because he didn’t score in any of the finals this year which is upsetting as he was by far one of, if not the best players that year.
Now two players I have to speak about are two players that were signed in the summer and two masterclass signings by Gerrard Houllier. The first is Gary McAllister, when Liverpool signed him everyone was asking the question why? He was 35, and in footballing terms that means you’re looking for your retirement home. The signing turned out to be value for money, Liverpool paid nothing and ‘he’s got no hair but we don’t care’ is still sung around Anfield to this day. Gary Mc’s 7 goals that season always seemed to be important ones, his pen was the goal that got us past a hard Barcelona team and his last minute winner in the derby that season was fantastic, even if he was trying to cross it, and capped off with a pen in the final of the Uefa cup, Liverpool’s number one cult hero and a fella who at the start of the season was given no hope at Liverpool but proved us all wrong, so go and have a glass of Buckfast on us.
When I told my brother last week I was doing this blog on Liverpool’s treble winning team he replied “you have to talk about Nick Barmby.’ So the second player I have to mention is him, signed from Everton of all places for £5.5 million. The first player since Dave Hickson to come to Liverpool from The Blues, and guess what, he scored the first goal of the first Merseyside Derby of the season… couldn’t write it could you? Barmby’s pace lit up this Liverpool team and was a great signing at the start of the season. He struggled with injury towards the end but he scored in 3 consecutive European away games on route to Germany, so he was massive help for us. Too bad his second season didn’t live up to his first in a red shirt.
The season was an all round success with two wins in the league over Manchester United, a home win agaist a very good Aresanl team, two derby wins with the second being one of the best derby’s ever a big thanks to Gary Mc for his winner, your always welcome in my house lad, and 3 great finals.
The first was against Birmingham City, Mr Fowler scores a rocket of a volley in the 30th minute and then guess who gives a pen away in the last kick of the game… Stephane Henchoz. It’s a mad tackle to throw in last minute of any game but a cup final? Good one mate, Liverpool’s hero is the goalkeeper Sander Westerveld, saving a pen from Andy Johnson (who has hair when this final took place) and Liverpool win their first of three cups of the year. Birmingham were in a lower league when this final took place so it should have been easy but we’re Liverpool, we like making things hard.
The second cup final, where do I begin? For over 82 minutes Liverpool are awful, we were lucky not to be 3 or 4 goals down and again Stephane Henchoz makes some questionable tackles and handballs in the game and is every lucky not to have had to have an early shower. Anyway Arsenal were great and they had one of the best teams that year and with some really class players, but on the 83rd minute Michael Owen scores his first goal in Cardiff. I was going mad doing knee slides all over the place, and then Patrik Burger (who my mum fancied because of his legs, women ay), plays one of the best balls down the line and Michael Owen uses his pace to get past two defenders and slots home his second goal. He goes on to do a front flip celebration which i’ve tried many a time to do and never got it right, one day. It’s a dream goal and one that wins The Reds their second cup of the season and beats Arsenal. Hats off to the Gunners they were class but when you have a world class forward he only needs his chance and he will take it. Michael Owen is mustard just for those 7 minutes of football.
The third final in Dortmund was crazy, one of the best nights of my life, 5-4 the game finishes. Goals from Babbel, Gerrard, McAllister and Fowler (another class finish) and then this is what makes this final nuts: Liverpool score in extra time with an own goal by Geli (a secret red i’ve heard) and we win. It’s a golden goal rule, which I don’t think half the players clock on to until they see everyone run on the pitch. I’ve never seen it again and that’s what makes it mad. Liverpool played well and were very unlucky to concede 4 goals. I remember going mad when we won that night, it’s a game thats stuck with me all my life. The Reds still had to play one more game in the League after this game, they had to win to get the third Champions League spot, we won 4-0 vs Charlton again Robbie Fowler the man himself scores another stunning goal.
So that’s it, my first season that I can recall as a young chap, and it was a gem of a season. It’s stuck with me all my life, I went to my first game that season, I saw my club win 3 trophies and I got the bug for doing mad front flips when I scored goals mostly ending with me on my ass. A BIG thank you to Tony Trotters for lending me his 2000/2001 treble DVD this week, you’ve brought back some happy memories. Also a thanks to my dad for taking me to my first match, you most likely got the ale in then too.
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