9th February

Supersub’s treble
1980 - David Johnson missed our trip to Norwich City after receiving four stitches to a head wound acquired on international duty, while Graeme Souness was suspended, which meant that Bob Paisley made his first changes to the reds side for seventeen games. Sammy Lee and David Fairclough stepped in, with supersub notching his only reds hat-trick in our 5-3 win. We had fallen behind to a first-minute header from the veteran Martin Peters, the last of his fourteen goals past us, with Kevin Reeves levelling things again with his head before the break, one of his four strikes against the reds. Justin Fashanu’s spectacular strike tied the game at 3-3 and was good enough to win Match Of The Day’s Goal of the Season award. Kenny Dalglish and Jimmy Case added late goals to clinch the victory.

The day was made even better for reds fans as Everton lost 4-0 at home to Ipswich Town, with Toffees supporters venting their frustration with boss Gordon Lee by throwing cushions onto the pitch!

On the way to Wembley
1982 - We reached our second consecutive League Cup Final as Ian Rush and Kenny Dalglish netted in a 2-2 draw in our Semi-final second leg meeting with Ipswich Town at Anfield, to progress 4-2 on aggregate. This was the third consecutive match in which we had faced the Tractor Boys. The game was also notable for future red John Wark taking a painfully direct hit from a Terry McDermott pile-driver, leading the Kop to start singing “Johnny Wark, Johnny Wark, Johnny Wark” in falsetto! Eric Gates struck one of his five goals against the reds, with Alan Brazil also on the scoresheet.

Sadio again
2019 - Sadio Mané netted in his fourth consecutive game to open the scoring with his head as we beat Bournemouth 3-0 at Anfield. Gini Wijnaldum was also on target before the break, with Mohamed Salah completing the scoring shortly after half-time as we restored a three-point lead over Manchester City at the top of the table.

An Abel start
2002 - Abel Xavier scored on his reds debut as we romped past Ipswich Town, winning 6-0 at Portman Road to end their good run and help send them on the way towards relegation. Sami Hyypiä also scored, to add to braces from strike partners Emile Heskey and Michael Owen. Pegguy Arphexad made his sixth and final reds appearance as a second-half substitute for Jerzy Dudek, helping us to keep our first clean sheet on this day in history since 1921, with ten matches between the two.

2016 – Centre-half Tiago Ilori played his third and last reds game as a young reds team lost 2-1 at West Ham United in our FA Cup Fourth Round replay. Philippe Coutinho scored from a free-kick after Michael Antonio had scored one of his five goals past us to date on the stroke of half time. However, Angelo Ogbonna headed in an extra-time winner.
1972 – We lost an FA Cup Fourth Round replay 2-0 at Leeds United, with Allan Clarke grabbing the last two of his seven goals past us as Ian Ross made his 69th and last reds appearance.

Mixed derby fortunes
1991 - David Speedie scored twice on his Anfield debut in a 3-1 win, with Jan Mølby also on target, in the first of our three consecutive derby games in twelve days. Pat Nevin bagged his only derby goal for the visitors in this fixture.
1929 – Forward John McFarlane became our youngest ever player when he debuted as we lost 2-1 at home to Everton in the League, with Harry Race grabbing our consolation. McFarlane was aged just seventeen years and 47 days, but only played one more senior game. Tommy White struck one of his four goals past us, with Tom Griffiths also netting.

On the move
1999 - Danny Murphy was sent back on loan to his former club Crewe Alexandra. He notched once in sixteen games back at Gresty Road. On the same day, Jamie Carragher and future reds Markus Babbel and Vladimír Šmicer all played for their countries.
2006 - Ex-reds loanee keeper Paul Jones was on the move, joining Queens Park Rangers on a free transfer from Wolverhampton Wanderers. He turned out 26 times for the R’s before retiring from the professional game at the end of the 2006/07 season.

2012 - Xherdan Shaqiri joined Bayern München from Basel for €11.6m after 23 goals in 130 games for the Swiss side. He had helped them to three consecutive League titles and the Swiss Cup twice.
2019 – Left-winger Alexander Kačaniklić signed for Hammarby IF back in his native Sweden having been released by Nantes the previous December.
2022 – Shaqiri moved to Chicago Fire from Olympique Lyonnais for a reported €6.5m, scoring fourteen times in 63 outings in his first two campaigns in the USA. On the same day, young midfielder Luca Stephenson signed a new contract with the reds. He had arrived from Sunderland at Under-15’s level.

Birth and deaths
2019 – Utility player Ian Ross died. He signed professional terms in August 1965 and netted four times in 69 appearances spread across six seasons at Anfield. He left for Aston Villa in February 1972 for £60,000, going on to captain them to the Third Division title, as well as the League Cup in 1975.
1993 – Japanese midfielder Wataru Endō was born in Yokohama. He signed from Vfb Stuttgart for a reported €19m in August 2023, debuting against Bournemouth the day after arriving.
1957 - Ex-reds centre-back Colin Irwin was born in Liverpool. He turned professional in November 1974 and made just 44 reds appearances, including the 1981 League Cup Final, although he did not get a winners’ medal, as he was left out of the replay. However, he won a European Cup winner’s medal in 1978, despite not seeing any action in our Wembley victory. John Toshack signed him for Swansea City for a club record £340,000 in the summer of 1981.

1905 – Half-back Barney Battles died in Gallowgate, Glasgow. He won the title two years running in Scotland, for Hearts in 1895 and then Celtic, joining the reds for six weeks on loan at the end of the 1895/96 season where he featured in two Second Division games and three of the four Test matches as we secured promotion, for which he received a special gold medal and a cheque for a “handsome sum”. He re-signed from Dundee in March 1898 for £20 but only played one more game before joining Celtic for a third spell seven months later.
1936 – Inside-forward Arthur Metcalf died. He signed from Newcastle United for £150 in May 1912 and netted 28 times in 63 reds games, playing in every position on the park.

Against the Mancs
1986 - Colin Gibson opened the scoring for Manchester United in our League meeting at Anfield. Paul Walsh had to go off with an ankle injury, and substitute John Wark equalised after Sammy Lee hit a post, to secure a point.
1921 - We also entertained United, winning our top-flight meeting 2-0 thanks to goals from Harry Lewis and Harry Chambers. Keeper Frank Mitchell made his reds bow in this game.
1946 - Unfortunately, we lost a Wartime League match at Maine Road 2-1, with Jack Balmer netting our consolation.

200 for Tiny
1935 - Centre-half Tom ‘Tiny’ Bradshaw played his 200th reds game as we drew 1-1 at West Bromwich Albion, with our score coming from a George Shaw own goal and Teddy Sandford bagging one of his five goals against the reds.

Reserves record
1952 - A record crowd of 18,511 attended a reserves fixture, in a game that marked Albert Stubbins’ return from injury, against Everton. This feat was especially impressive as over 40,000 were watching the Blues’ first team face Leicester City in a Second Division match across the park at the same time.

Trotters again
1924 - We faced Bolton Wanderers for the second game in succession, following a 4-1 FA Cup Second Round win at Burnden Park. Harry ‘Smiler’ Chambers and Dick Forshaw struck before Donald McKinlay converted a penalty in a 3-1 top-flight victory. John Smith bagged one of his seven strikes past us.

Award winners
2004 - Harry Kewell was named Oceania’s Player of the Year for the third time.
2007 - Rafael Benítez won the Barclays Manager of the Month award for January after four straight League wins during the month.

Thumping the Gunners
1907 - Jack Parkinson bagged a brace as we beat Woolwich Arsenal 4-0 at Anfield, with Jack Cox and Bill McPherson also on the scoresheet.

Out of a job
1997 - John Toshack resigned as Manager of Spanish side Real Club Deportivo La Coruña after eighteen months in charge, during which time they had beaten Real Madrid to win the Supercopa, the Spanish equivalent of the Charity Shield.
2007 – Ex-reds midfielder and Assistant Manager Doug Livermore left as Assistant Manager of Norwich City, having initially joined as Bruce Rioch’s number two in June 1999.

International reds on target
2005 - John Arne Riise struck in Norway’s 3-0 win in Malta, with future red Mark González netting as Chile beat Ecuador 3-0 in another friendly, his last goal as an Albacete Balompié player. Future red Stewart Downing made his senior England bow as they were held to a goalless draw by the Netherlands in a friendly at Villa Park. Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard, future reds John Heitinga, Jan Kromkamp, Dirk Kuyt and ex-red Michael Owen all also played in this game.

Milan Baroš, El-Hadji Diouf, Jerzy Dudek, Steve Finnan, Djimi Traoré, future reds Robbie Keane, David Martin and Andriy Voronin, and ex-reds Arnaud Bühler, Gareth Roberts and Rigobert Song all also featured in friendlies, with John Toshack taking charge of Wales for the first time in his second spell, as they beat Hungary 2-0 at the Millennium Stadium, with future red Craig Bellamy grabbing both goals in his first international while on loan with Celtic, his only strikes for his country while playing north of the border. Another future red, Fernando Torres, was on target as Spain thumped San Marino 5-0 in a World Cup qualifier in Almeria. Meanwhile, Yossi Benayoun grabbed his last goal as a Real Racing Club de Santander player as Israel were held to a 3-3 draw in Jerusalem by Croatia.

2011 – Daniel Agger netted in Denmark’s 2-1 friendly defeat to England in Copenhagen, with Glen Johnson, Christian Poulsen and future reds Stewart Downing and James Milner also featuring. Dirk Kuyt scored from the spot as the Netherlands beat Austria 3-1 in Eindhoven. Alberto Aquilani, Lucas, Raul Meireles, Danny Wilson, future reds Charlie Adam, Mario Balotelli, John Heitinga, Ragnar Klavan, Dejan Lovren, Joël Matip, Xherdan Shaqiri and Gini Wijnaldum, and ex-reds Alou Diarra, Javier Mascherano, Nikolay Mihaylov and John Arne Riise all also featured in friendlies.

International firsts and lasts
2011 – Fernando Torres won his first cap as a Chelsea player in Spain’s 1-0 friendly victory over Colombia in Madrid, with fellow ex-reds Xabi Alonso and Álvaro Arbeloa also in action. Future red Oussama Assaidi made his senior international bow as Morocco beat Niger 3-0 in a friendly in Casablanca. Meanwhile, reserves defender Chris Mavinga played his first game for France Under-20’s while on loan at Koninklijke Racing Club Genk, as they beat England 2-1 in a friendly in Shrewsbury.

2005 - Future red Philipp Degen made his senior international bow in their 2-1 friendly defeat of the United Arab Emirates in Duba, with Stéphane Henchoz also playing. Sotirios Kyrgiakos won his first cap as a Rangers player on the same day as Greece beat future red Christian Poulsen’s Denmark 2-1 in a World Cup qualifier in Piraeus.
2010 – Raheem Sterling won his third and last cap while a Queens Park Rangers player as England Under-16’s drew a friendly 1-1 in Belgium.

Other reds games
1957 – We lost a Second Division fixture 3-2 at Leicester City with Billy Liddell and John Evans giving us a two-goal half-time lead.
1952 – We held Derby County to a 1-1 draw at the Baseball Ground. John Morris netted the last of his seven goals against the reds, before Cyril Done scored.
1901 – We lost 2-0 in an FA Cup First Round replay at Notts County, with Scottish winger Tommy Robertson dismissed for the reds.

Sami the Dutchman
1996 - Sami Hyypiä made his debut in the Dutch League as Willem II were thumped 5-0 at home by Sander Westerveld’s Vitesse Arnhem.

Also in international action
2020 – Future red Alexis Mac Allister featured as Argentina Under-23’s lost an Olympics qualifier 3-0 to Brazil in Colombia.
2018 – Bobby Duncan played for England Under-17’s as they lost 4-0 to Portugal in the Algarve Tournament, with ex-reds Academy Manager Steve Cooper in charge.
2016 – Cooper also managed England Under-17’s in the same competition, as they lost 2-0 to the Netherlands.

1997 – Future red John Arne Riise played for Norway Under-16’s as they beat host nation Portugal 2-0 in the Algarve Tournament.
1993 – Future red Bjørn Tore Kvarme featured as Norway Under-21’s lost 1-0 in Portugal.
1977 – Ray Clemence, Steve Heighway and Kevin Keegan all featured in friendlies.