19th February

Brucie’s farewell
1994 - Bruce Grobbelaar played his final reds game in a 2-0 League defeat at Leeds United, with David Wetherall and future red Gary McAllister on target, the latter via a deflection off Mark Wright. Our eccentric keeper had played 628 times in total, helping us to six League titles, one European Cup, three FA Cups, three League Cups and three FA Charity Shields. David James replaced him for the final minute, so beginning a run of 213 consecutive reds appearances. Ian Rush made his 400th League appearance for the reds that day.
1997 - We faced Leeds again, with Stan Collymore bagging a brace as we won 4-0 at Anfield, as Jamie Redknapp and Robbie Fowler also got on the scoresheet. Stan’s first goal was our 300th in the Premier League.

Centurions galore
1980 – Terry McDermott netted while playing his 200th reds game, with Alan Hansen completing his century and Phil Neal appearing for the 300th time, as we beat Nottingham Forest 2-0 at Anfield, with Ray Kennedy also on target.
1964 – Roger Hunt reached 200 appearances for the club, scoring in our 2-2 draw at Aston Villa. Alf Arrowsmith also netted.
1958 – Billy Liddell reached 200 goals for the reds in our 1-1 Second Division draw at Doncaster Rovers as right-back John Molyneux played his hundredth League game for us.

Go back to Italy
2008 - Late goals from Dirk Kuyt and Steven Gerrard handed us a 2-0 victory over Internazionale in the first leg of our Champions League Round of sixteen tie at Anfield. Ex-Blue Marco Materazzi was sent off for the visitors, while Gerrard’s goal meant that he had scored in his fifth consecutive game in Europe, a joint club record and a new record in a single season.
2015 – We beat Beşiktaş JK 1-0 at Anfield in the first leg of our UEFA Europa League Round of 32 tie, with Mario Balotelli converting a late spot kick, his fourth and last reds goal, having fought off skipper Jordan Henderson for the right to take it. Unfortunately, we lost the return fixture by the same score, crashing out on penalties.

Signing on
1990 - Steve McManaman signed as a professional for the reds. Shaggy struck 66 times in 364 reds games, helping us to the FA Cup in 1992 and the Coca-Cola Cup three years later.
1943 – Centre-half Laurie Hughes signed from Tranmere Rovers. He made 326 reds appearances, netting just once. He helped us to the first post-war League title in 1947 and the FA Cup Final three years later, becoming the first red to appear in the World Cup Finals later that year.

Heading towards Wembley
2012 – We beat Brighton & Hove Albion 6-1 in an FA Cup Fifth Round tie at Anfield, as we benefited from three own goals for the first time in our history, although one of these is also often credited to Steven Gerrard. Martin Škrtel headed in the opener, with Andy Carroll and Luis Suárz also netting, with the Uruguayan also having a penalty saved. Ex-red Alan Navarro featured for the Seagulls.

First and last strikes
1977 – John Toshack scored his 96th and final reds goal as we beat Derby County 3-1 at Anfield with Joey Jones on target for the third and last time. Kevin Hector scored his fourth and final past us, with Kevin Keegan also on target.
2022 – Milot Rashica’s deflected strike gave Norwich City the lead shortly after the break. Sadio Mané equalised before Mohamed Salah scored his 150th goal for the club. Luis Díaz then bagged his first strike for the reds as we won 3-1.

First time at Old Trafford
1910 - We played in the first ever match at Manchester United’s new ground, Old Trafford, spoiling the party by running out 4-3 winners to secure our first ever away victory against them. United’s Sandy Turnbull struck one of his five goals against the reds with Tom Homer also on target for the home side before the break. Arthur Goddard pulled a goal back after half-time before George Wall restored United’s two-goal cushion with one of his ten strikes past us. Goddard struck again, his fiftieth League goal for the reds, before a brace from Jimmy Stewart handed us victory.

Dick departs
1925 – Centre-forward Dick Johnson was sold to Stoke after thirty goals in 82 outings, including two hat-tricks, since arriving in January 1920. He helped us to the League title in 1923 and was noted for his overhead bicycle kicks.

Trigger at Wembley
1992 - Rob Jones made his full England debut in a 2-0 victory over France at Wembley, winning the first of his eight international caps. Mark Wright also played, winning his first cap as a red, with future red Nigel Clough also in the line-up.

On the same day, Dean Saunders and ex-reds John Aldridge and Kevin Sheedy all played in the only full international ever played at the Royal Dublin Society, as Wales beat the Republic of Ireland 1-0. This was Sheedy’s 42nd cap, and final one as an Evertonian. Meanwhile, ex-red Jim Magilton and future red Gary McAllister were in opposition as Scotland beat Northern Ireland 1-0 in a friendly at Hampden Park.
2020 - Kaide Gordon debuted for England Under-16’s in their 4-0 thumping of Denmark at St. George’s Park.

Held by the Germans
2019 – We were held to a goalless draw at Anfield in the first leg of our UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie by Bayern München, en route to glory in Madrid at the end of that campaign.

FA Cup memories
Of our four other FA Cup ties on this day over the years, we have only won one, although this was a handsome victory.
1968 - Striker Tony Hateley grabbed four goals in our 5-2 Fourth Round replay win over Walsall at Anfield, with Geoff Strong also on the scoresheet and Tommy Watson nabbing a brace for the visitors. It was such a foggy evening that the Kop had to chant for those in the Anny Road to tell them who had scored down that end! We went on to reach the Sixth Round that year, before succumbing to eventual winners West Bromwich Albion after a second replay.

1995 - Robbie Fowler netted his first goal in the competition, equalising in our 1-1 Anfield draw with Wimbledon in a Fifth Round tie, with Robbie Earle hitting the post with just two minutes remaining. We went on to win the replay 2-0 at Selhurst Park, but were knocked out at home by Tottenham Hotspur in the next round.

The king honoured
1985 – Kenny Dalglish received his MBE for services to football from The Queen at Buckingham Palace.

Bill at the treble again
1938 - Billy ‘Ginger’ Richardson struck a hat-trick for West Bromwich Albion as we were thumped 5-1 at The Hawthorns, having already done so against the reds two years earlier, taking his tally against us to nine. Jack Balmer bagged our consolation as Ike Clarke netted the first of his four goals against the reds, with Joe Johnson also on target.

Ned for Scotland
1887 - Future reds keeper Ned Doig won the first of his five Scotland caps as they beat Northern Ireland 4-1 in the British International Championships at Hampden Park.

Happy birthdays
2003 – Polish keeper Jakub Ojrzyński was born in Warsaw. He arrived at the Academy in the summer of 2019, turning professional in July 2020.
1973 – Former first-team fitness coach Paco de Miguel was born in Madrid. He left Valencia to move to Anfield in 2007, continuing to work with Rafael Benítez at future clubs.
1870 – Scottish winger Patrick Gordon was born in Renton, West Dunbartonshire. He signed from Everton in June 1893, netting eight times in thirty reds games as he helped us to the Second Division title before joining Blackburn Rovers in October 1894.

Trouncing the Blues
1901 - We thumped Manchester City 8-0 at their old Hyde Road ground in a benefit match for Reid. John Hunter bagged a treble, with John Davies netting a brace and Bill Goldie, Andy McGuigan and Charles Satterthwaite also scoring.

Brad bows out
2000 - Brad Friedel’s USA lost at the Quarter-final stage of the Gold Cup in Miami. Their game against Colombia ended 2-2, but the Americans lost a penalty shoot-out 2-1, despite Friedel saving one of the Colombian kicks.

Derby despair
1898 - We lost 2-0 to Everton in a friendly at Anfield.

Down from the seaside
We have twice entertained Blackpool in First Division matches on this day in history.
1949 - We were held to a 1-1 draw when Jack Balmer grabbed our goal. The legendary Stanley Matthews and Stan Mortenson were both in the visitors’ side, for whom future Blue Jimmy McIntosh struck one of his six goals past us.
1966 - Roger Hunt bagged a brace with Alf Arrowsmith and Gordon Milne also on the scoresheet as we triumphed 4-1.

Other reds games
1975 – We shared a goalless draw with West Ham United in muddy conditions in East London.
1972 – We beat Sheffield United 2-0 at Anfield with John Toshack on target twice.
1955 – We lost 2-0 to Huddersfield Town in an FA Cup Fifth Round meeting in L4 with Jimmy Glazzard nabbing the last of his five goals past us after Albert Hobson had given the Terriers the lead.

1927 – We lost 2-0 at Arsenal in another Fifth Round tie, with Jimmy Brain netting one of his eight goals against the reds and Charlie Buchan scoring one of his 21 past us.
1921 – We drew 0-0 at Bradford City.

On the move
2004 - Ex-reserves midfielder Danny Williams joined Chester City on loan from Kidderminster Harriers. He played five times for the Third Division outfit before moving into Welsh football.
2022 - Paul Ince was appointed Interim Manager of Reading, saving them from relegation from the Championship with two games to spare, being given the job on a permanent basis in May 2022.
2023 – Ex-Academy Coach Neil Critchley was sacked as Head Coach of Queens Park Rangers after only leading them to one victory in twelve games in charge.

Also in international action
1944 – Matt Busby captained England as they thumped Scotland 6-2 in a Wartime International at Wembley.
1989 – Future reds Stig Inge Bjørnebye and Øyvind Leonhardsen both featured as Norway Under-20’s lost a World Championships Finals group game 2-0 to Argentina in Saudi Arabia.

1993 – Future reds goalkeeping coach Cláudio Taffarel featured as Brazil drew a friendly 1-1 in Argentina.
2016 – Bobby Duncan and Curtis Jones both played for England Under-15’s as they beat USA Under-16’s 4-2 at St. George’s Park, with Duncan on target.
2018 – Future red Fábio Carvalho played for England Under-16’s as they beat Scotland 2-0 at St. George’s Park.