Four Four Two - UK (2022-07)

I n TERVIEWSI n TERVIEWS

a council worker. But Andrew was nothing if

not persistent, and one day he turned up on

the doorstep having prepared a letter. He’d

gone to so much trouble that I felt obliged to

go along with his plan. We posted them, and

I got replies from the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal,

Watford and Brighton saying, ‘Thanks but no

thanks’. Sadly, not one Scottish club replied.

Middlesbrough didn’t write back, but did call

and invite me down south for a trial. I played

for Boro against Grimsby, didn’t do a lot and

returned to Glasgow thinking that was it. But

manager Willie Maddren asked me to play for

Boro’s reserves against Bradford. I scored two

and made two, and the very next day I was

signing a two-year contract. I barely missed

a game in the following four seasons!

You had quite the reputation as a prolific

writer of letters back in the day?

[Laughs] Ah, the story about me writing to 54

clubs asking for a trial? Well, it’s not quite as

straightforward as that! I’d just been the top

scorer north of the border, which was some

feat for a bloke playing for the unfashionable

Albion Rovers. I expected teams to come in

for me, but that summer no one did, initially.

After a few weeks, a journalist called Andrew

Gold rang me at my parents’ house and did

a piece headlined, ‘Why is Scotland’s most

prolific goalscorer being ignored?’ Again, not

a bite, so he suggested I send letters to clubs

in both Scotland and England. At first I said

no because it felt like begging. I was ready to

chuck it all in and concentrate on my job as

You joined Liverpool in 2009, teaming up
with Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres.
Did you feel back where you belonged?
That was an amazing feeling, and everyone
knows that’s why I’d left Chelsea in the first
place. I wanted to get back to that level, but
I had to prove myself. Just before I signed for
Liverpool, England played Andorra. Stevie G
spoke to me about joining, and I knew I was
going to be welcomed there. When you turn
up and see all these world-class players who
count on you as a team-mate, it’s a feeling
you can’t explain.

Defending against prime Torres in training
must have helped you to improve...
Torres was incredible, but he was pretty quiet
in training and just turned into a monster on
weekends. But Stevie G trained like he played.
He was unbelievable every day and always
the first pick for anyone’s training five-a-side
team. He’d do anything for the team; play in
any position, defend and go forward. He was
the best all-rounder I’ve seen. I improved so
much playing with guys that good.

Despite competing on multiple fronts each
season, Liverpool won only a League Cup in
your time there. What held the team back?
It’s hard to put a finger on it, but there always
seemed to be a few players who wanted to
leave during that time. That prevented some
players from expressing themselves, because
if you’re not all pulling in the same direction,
you’re not going to be successful.

Roy Hodgson’s spell as Liverpool gaffer in
2010-11 didn’t go well, and he criticised
your commitment. How did you respond?
Roy was probably out of his depth. He’d done
great things as a coach – all around the world
at so many clubs – but I think Liverpool was
a step too far. I can take criticism, but I’d like
to hear it from the gaffer first rather than the
press. The club was in a tough moment, not
just with the manager but also at board level.
We’d been selling good players to rivals and
not replacing them. Anybody would struggle
in that environment. But then Kenny Dalglish
took the reins and we won the League Cup.
He brought the dressing room together again.

You won 54 England caps and went to three
major tournaments, but the team couldn’t
excel on the biggest stage. Why was that?
I think because of the pressure that was put
on us and the negativity around us. England’s
approach is different now – when we played,
managers were so scared of the press that
they treated us like prisoners. There’s a lot of
free time when you’re off on camps and it’s
important to let the players enjoy themselves.
We’re professionals – we do this for a living –
but I think managers were scared to be seen
giving us time off or letting us go to a cinema,
as they were concerned about the backlash.
I think that’s been one of Gareth Southgate’s
best successes as England boss – he’s got the
balance right and lets the players relax, which
is great to see. Everyone’s behind him and, as
I mentioned earlier, if the players are enjoying
themselves, they’ll perform better.

Interview Ian Murtagh

The Scotland-born Ireland hero on the letter that sealed his

move to Boro, and meeting Pope John Paul II at the Vatican

“I RAnG UP MY WIFE EVERY

n IGHT AT ITALIA 90 – THEn

ASKED TO PUT THE DOG On”

I n TERVIEWS

TEAMS

Greenock Morton

Airdrieonians

Queen of the South

Albion Rovers

Middlesbrough

Port Vale

Darlington

Billingham Synthonia

Republic of Ireland

BERnIE SLAVEn

FourFourTwo July 2022 93