24th May

Happy birthday Vlad
1973 - Vladimír Šmicer was born in Verneřice, Děčín in Czechoslovakia. He made 184 reds appearances following his £3.75m transfer from Racing Club de Lens, scoring nineteen times, including a crucial strike in Istanbul. He signed for us on his 26th birthday, although he did not officially become a Liverpool player until 1st July 1999, and left for Girondins de Bordeaux in June 2005, having helped us to claim the Champions League, UEFA Cup, FA Cup and two League Cups.

1965 - Nicky Tanner was born in Bristol. He signed from Bristol Rovers for £20,000 in August 1988 and made a total of 59 appearances for the reds under Graeme Souness, netting his only goal at Goodison Park in December 1991.

Sami’s farewell
2009 - We beat Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 at Anfield in our final game of the season, with Xabi Alonso playing his 210th and final reds game and Sami Hyypiä making an emotional farewell after his 464th and last appearance for the club. Fernando Torres headed in the opener with his fiftieth reds goal, in just his 84th game. We extended our lead after Alan Hutton deflected in a Dirk Kuyt effort to register our 150th own goal, before ex-red Robbie Keane reduced the deficit with the most recent of his five goals past us. Yossi Benayoun rounded off the scoring before Sami made his entrance.

Stepping down
2004 - Gérard Houllier stepped down as reds boss. He had been in sole charge since November 1998, leading us to the UEFA Cup, FA Cup, two League Cups, UEFA Super Cup and FA Charity Shield. He said, “I'd rather have stayed as manager but I leave on good terms with everybody. I may have left Liverpool, but Liverpool will not leave me.”
2023 – Australian keeper Brad Jones announced his retirement from playing. He joined the from Middlesbrough for £2.3m in August 2010, making 27 senior appearances before being released in June 2015. On the same day, ex-red Pepe Reina played his thousandth professional game as Villarreal beat Cádiz 2-0.

Crushed
2015 - We were humbled 6-1 in the final game of the season at Stoke City. Mame Biram Diouf bagged a brace before Jon Walters grabbed one of his seven goals past us. Ex-red Charlie Adam and Steven N’Zonzi then put the home side five up at the break. Steven Gerrard netted his 186th and last goal in his 710th and final reds game, but ex-red Peter Crouch then added his fourth and last goal against the reds. This was our biggest defeat since April 1963.

Appointments galore
2011 – A raft of appointments at the club were announced, including Frank McParland as Director of Academy and Player Development, Pep Segura as Technical Director, Stuart Webber as Director of Recruitment, and Steve Cooper as Under-16’s Coach and Academy Manager. Rodolfo Borrell stepped up from Under-18’s Coach to Reserve Team Head Coach, with Mike Marsh taking over the Under-18’s.

On the same day, Lucas Leiva was presented with the Standard Chartered Liverpool FC Player of the Season for 2010-11 award.

En route to title number five
1947 - Our only other first-class game on this day to date brought a 2-1 victory at Arsenal in our penultimate game of the season, taking us back to the top of the table, despite being behind with only a quarter of an hour to go. Jack Balmer headed us level before a Bob Priday cross was turned into his own net by full-back Wally Barnes. We pipped Manchester United for the title that season by one point, to claim it for the fifth time. Boss George Kay was not present at the match as he was away watching transfer targets, so captain Balmer gave the team talk and the board of directors voted on tactical changes during the match!

Emlyn for the last time
1980 - Ex-red Emlyn Hughes won his 62nd and final cap for England, coming off the bench as they beat Scotland 2-0 in a British International Championships match at Hampden Park. Phil Thompson skippered an England side that also included Ray Clemence, David Johnson and Terry McDermott, while Kenny Dalglish played for the Scots.

Nice one Cyril
1941 - Cyril Done netted a treble as we thumped Chester 6-1 in a Wartime League game at Sealand Road. Douglas Cooke and Billy Liddell also scored, with our other strike coming from a Cole own goal.

Bob’s farewell
1974 – Scottish left-back Bob Pursell died. He twice got us into trouble, firstly when we made an illegal approach to sign him from Queen’s Park in September 1911. He was then involved in the 1915 match-fixing scandal with Manchester United. He played 113 reds games without scoring, including the 1914 FA Cup Final, moving on to Port Vale in May 1920.

New York friendlies
We have twice played friendlies in New York on this day in history.
1953 - We beat 1. FC Nürnberg 4-3 in the Triborough Stadium, with Kevin Baron, Mervyn Jones, Billy Liddell and Sammy Smyth all on target.
1964 - We lost 2-0 to Hamburger SV at the Yankee Stadium. This was our first defeat in 36 games played over five visits to North America since the war.

Most recently
2017 – Forward Rhian Brewster played his first reds game as we beat Sydney 3-0 in a post-season friendly down under, with ex-reds Daniel Agger, Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard and Steve McManaman all also in action. Daniel Sturridge, Alberto Moreno and Roberto Firmino were all on target in the first half.

Friendlies in Scandinavia
We have played three matches in Scandinavia on this day in history, scoring a total of twelve goals, but conceding eleven.
1914 - Billy Lacey struck twice as we drew 3-3 with a København Select XI in Denmark, with Tom Miller also scoring.
1932 – We beat an Odense Select side 3-0 on our Danish tour. Edmund Hancock struck twice, with Gordon Gunson also on target.
1939 - We lost 5-4 to a Swedish Combination side, with our goals coming from Harman van den Berg, Willie Fagan, Jack Balmer and Phil Taylor.
1951 - Cyril Done bagged a brace as we beat a Göteborg Select team 5-3, while Kevin Baron, Billy Liddell and Jimmy Payne also got on the scoresheet. This was the third consecutive game on this Swedish tour that Done had scored in.

Double debutants
2001 - Future reds Chris Kirkland and Jermaine Pennant both made their debuts for England Under-21’s, with Stephen Wright also appearing in their 3-0 friendly defeat of Mexico at Filbert Street. This was Kirkland’s only cap as a Coventry City player.

Reds on target at Wembley for England
2010 - Glen Johnson grabbed his first senior international goal, with ex-red Peter Crouch also netting as England beat Mexico 3-1 in a friendly. Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard and future red James Milner all also featured. On the same day, Maxi Rodríguez won his first cap as a reds player, netting twice as Argentina thumped Canada 5-0 in a friendly in Buenos Aires, with Javier Mascherano skippering the side. Meanwhile Brad Jones won his last cap while with Middlesbrough as Australia beat New Zealand 2-1 in a friendly in Melbourne.

1975 - Future red David Johnson scored as England trounced Scotland 5-1 in the British International Championships. Ray Clemence, Kevin Keegan, future red Kenny Dalglish and ex-red Ted MacDougall all also played.
1978 - Phil Neal netted from the spot as England thumped Hungary 4-1 in a friendly. Emlyn Hughes captained the side, with ex-red Kevin Keegan also playing. Steve Heighway and future red Mark Lawrenson played for the Republic of Ireland on the same day as they drew their European Championships qualifier in Denmark 3-3.

Double Dutch
2008 – Ryan Babel bagged his final international goal as a reds player with Dirk Kuyt also on target as the Netherlands beat Andriy Voronin’s Ukraine 3-0 in a friendly in Feyenoord, with future reds coach John Heitinga also playing. Meanwhile, Krisztián Németh struck the only goal as Hungary Under-19’s faced Portugal in a European Championships qualifier in Székesfehérvár, with keeper Péter Gulácsi also featuring. Damien Plessis and future reds Robbie Keane and Sotirios Kyrgiakos also played for their countries that day.
2013 – Future red Gini Wijnaldum scored for the Dutch Under-21’s as they beat Australia Under-20’s 3-1 in a friendly in Emmen.

Signing on
2016 – Keeper Loris Karius signed from 1. FSV Mainz 05 for £4.7m, officially becoming a red on 1st July, making 49 senior appearances for the reds, including our UEFA Champions League Final defeat in Kyiv. He signed for Newcastle United in September 2022 after his contract expired. On the same day, former reds Assistant Manager Pako Ayestarán was appointed permanent Head Coach of Valencia, although he was sacked just four months later.
1912 – Inside-forward Arthur Metcalf signed from Newcastle United for £150. He netted 28 times in 63 reds games, playing in every position on the park.

2006 - Ex-reds left-back Grégory Vignal signed for Racing Club de Lens, having been released by Portsmouth. He made 22 League appearances before moving back to England to join Birmingham City.
1948 – Right-half Roy Saunders signed on a free transfer from Hull City. He netted once in 146 reds appearances before joining Swansea Town in March 1959 in part-exchange for forward Des Palmer, who never featured for our first team. He was the father of 1990’s reds striker Dean and died in January 2009.

2012 – Reserves forward David Amoo signed for Preston North End, netting once in 24 games before joining Tranmere Rovers in January 2013. On the same day, left-back Fábio Aurélio joined Grêmio back in his native Brazil, having been released for the second time. He had arrived at Anfield on a Bosman free transfer in July 2006, netting four goals in 134 games, helping us to claim the FA Community Shield in his very first senior appearance.
2017 - Amoo signed for Cambridge United having been released by Partick Thistle, netting twice in 27 games in his first season with the U’s.

Other boss movements
2022 - Jürgen Klopp was named as both the LMA Manager of the Year and the Premier League’s Manager of the Season.
2001 - Kevin Keegan was appointed Manager of Manchester City, following his departure from the England job seven months earlier. He led them to the First Division title in his first season, then keeping them in the top flight before leaving in March 2005.
1997 - Graeme Souness resigned as Southampton boss. He had been in charge at The Dell for less than a year, during which time he had guided them to just one point clear of relegation, and famously signed Ali Dia, George Weah’s alleged cousin.

Redders injured
1997 - Jamie Redknapp was stretchered off with an ankle injury as England beat South Africa 2-1 in a friendly at Old Trafford. This was not the only time he was injured while on international duty.

Roger on target
1963 - Roger Hunt scored for the Football League side in a FA Centenary/Football League 75th anniversary match that ended 3-3 at Highbury.
1967 - He struck in England’s 2-0 friendly defeat of Spain at Wembley.

Other international goalscorers
2019 – Future red Darwin Núñez struck as Uruguay Under-20’s beat Norway 3-1 in a World Championship Finals group game in Poland.
2014 – Jordon Ibe bagged a treble as England Under-19’s thumped Montenegro 6-0 in a European Championships qualifier in Walsall, his last goals at this level. Clubmate Lloyd Jones debuted at this level, while Ryan Fulton played for Scotland in the same competition in Burton.
1939 - Future reds boss Don Welsh netted his only international goal while winning his third and final cap in England’s 2-0 friendly win in Romania.

1971 - Steve Heighway scored for the Republic of Ireland as they drew 1-1 with an FA XI at Lansdowne Road in a match to celebrate the FAI’s Golden Jubilee. This was his only goal for the senior Irish side.
2011 – Ex-red Robbie Keane bagged a brace, including a penalty, skippering the Republic of Ireland as they trounced Northern Ireland 5-0 in a Carling Nations Cup game in Dublin.
2012 - Future reds loanee Nuri Şahin netted for Turkey as they beat Georgia 3-1 in a friendly in Austria, his only goal as a Real Madrid player.
2006 – Şahin also played for Turkey as they drew a friendly 3-3 in Belgium.

Backroom appointments
2012 – The appointments of Jen Chang as Corporate Relations and Communications Director and Chief Commercial Officer Billy Hogan were both announced. However, Chang left “by mutual consent” after just five months in the role.

Chico the boss again
2002 - Steve Nicol was re-appointed interim head coach of New England Revolution, in the US Major League. He took them to the final of the MLS play-offs in his first full season, remaining in charge until October 2011.

Skippers for the first time
1982 - Graeme Souness captained Scotland for the first time as they beat Wales 1-0 in the British International Championships at Hampden Park. Kenny Dalglish, Alan Hansen, Ian Rush and ex-red Joey Jones all also played that day.
1926 - Full-back Tommy Lucas became only the second red to captain England as he won his third and final cap in their 5-3 friendly defeat off Belgium in Antwerp. Future reds forward Tosh Johnson scored on his international bow.
1958 - Reds midfielder Johnny Wheeler skippered an FA XI that won a tour game 5-0 in Nigeria.

Howie for England
1984 - Ex-red Howard Gayle scored his only England Under-21’s goal while winning his third and final cap as they beat Spain 2-0 at Bramall Lane to clinch the European Championships 3-0 on aggregate. Fellow ex-red Dave Watson also played.
2010 – Conor Coady skippered England Under-17’s as they beat Turkey 2-1 in a European Championships Finals group game in Liechtenstein, with Andre Wisdom also featuring.

First and last caps
2006 - Mark González won his first cap as a reds player, and fourteenth to date, as Chile beat Steve Staunton’s Republic of Ireland side 1-0 in a friendly at Lansdowne Road, with future red Robbie Keane also featuring. Meanwhile, Ramon Calliste made his final appearance for Wales Under-21’s while on our books as they thumped Estonia 5-1 in a European Championships qualifier, with future red Ragnar Klavan winning his seventh and last cap at this level. Future red Daniel Agger and John Arne Riise were also in international action that day.

1998 – Future red Frode Kippe made his Norway Under-23’s debut as they beat Sweden 1-0 in Romania.
2019 – Rhys Williams won his fourth and last cap for England Under-18’s as they drew 1-1 with Spain in Slovakia, before losing a penalty shoot-out 3-2.

Carl the champion
2006 - Carl Medjani skippered France Under-20’s to victory in the Final of the Toulon Tournament, with the game against the Netherlands ending goalless, but the French winning 5-3 on penalties.

European Cup joy
1995 - Future red Jari Litmanen started as Ajax beat AC Milan 1-0 in Vienna to win the UEFA Champions League.
2000 - Ex-red Steve McManaman and future red Fernando Morientes both netted as Real Madrid beat Valencia 3-0 in the Stade de France to claim the trophy, with future reds Nicolas Anelka and Mauricio Pellegrino both also featuring.

Also in international action
1964 – Gordon Milne and Peter Thompson both played for England as they beat the Republic of Ireland 3-1 in a friendly in Dublin.
1973 – Future red Ray Kennedy featured for England Under-23’s in their 1-1 draw in Denmark.
1981 – Future reds Mark Lawrenson and Michael Robinson both played as the Republic of Ireland lost a friendly 3-0 in Poland.
1983 – Future red John Wark turned out for Scotland as they were held to a goalless draw by Northern Ireland in the British International Championships at Hampden Park.
1986 – Future reds John Barnes and Peter Beardsley played for England as they beat Canada 1-0 in a friendly in Vancouver.

1987 – Future red Glenn Hysén played for Sweden as they beat Malta 1-0 in a European Championships qualifier in Gothenburg.
1988 – Barnes and Beardsley featured for England again, with clubmate Steve McMahon and future red Mark Wright also in action as England were held to a 1-1 draw by Colombia in a Rous Cup game at Wembley.
1994 – Future reds Phil Babb and Jason McAteer and ex-reds Ray Houghton and Steve Staunton all played for the Republic of Ireland as they beat Bolivia 1-0 in a friendly at Lansdowne Road.
2015 – Future red Marko Grujić played for Serbia Under-20’s as they beat the USA 1-0.