5th May

In comes Jocky
1977 - Alan Hansen signed from Partick Thistle for £100,000. He went on to make 620 reds appearances, netting fourteen times as he helped us to three European Cups, eight League titles, two FA Cups, three League Cups and four FA Charity Shields.

Final strikes
1996 - Ian Rush scored his 346th and final reds goal in a 2-2 draw at Manchester City, with our other strike being a Steve Lomas own goal, the hundredth time we had benefited to date in this way in the League, as City were relegated. We were actually two goals up before Uwe Rosler and Kit Symons struck for the home side.
1981 – Centre-half Colin Irwin bagged his third and last goal while playing his 44th and final game for the club, with defender Richard Money appearing for the seventeenth and final time. Ray Kennedy also scored as we won 2-1 at Middlesbrough. David Shearer netted one of his four goals past us as Terry McDermott played his 200th League game for the reds.

European disappointment
1966 - We played our first European final against Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e.V. Dortmund at Hampden Park in the European Cup Winners’ Cup. The game ended 1-1 after ninety minutes, with Roger Hunt bagging our equaliser after Siegfried Held’s goal, but with eleven minutes of extra time remaining, Reinhard ‘Stan’ Libuda’s shot hit the crossbar, and rebounded off Ron Yeats to hand the cup to Dortmund, who became the first German side to claim a European trophy.
1981 - A commemorative match was staged at the Westfalenstadion in aid of the children’s holiday party in Dortmund, an event organised for children staying at home during the summer break!

Wembley disappointment
2012 – We lost the FA Cup Final 2-1 to Chelsea, falling behind to an early goal from Ramires. Didier Drogba struck his eleventh and final goal against us after the break. Substitute Andy Carroll pulled a goal back, his eleventh and last one for the reds, before his late header was deemed not to have crossed the line when pushed onto the bar by keeper Petr Čech.

Heading to another European final
2016 – We beat Villarreal 3-0 at Anfield to reach the UEFA Europa League Final in Basel, 3-1 on aggregate. Bruno Soriano diverted a Daniel Sturridge strike into his own net early on, with Sturridge putting us ahead after an hour before Víctor Ruiz was sent off for the visitors. Adam Lallana completed the scoring.

The dream is over
2014 - Joe Allen scored a club record 59th first-half goal in a season at Crystal Palace, with Damien Delaney putting through his own net after the break. Two minutes later, Luis Suárez scored his 82nd and final reds goal, a club record fourteenth away goal of the season and joint all-Premier League record 31st goal in a campaign as we took a three-goal lead, reaching a new club record of 48 away League goals. This was an all-Premier League record 21st time in a season that we had scored three or more goals in a game. However, Delaney pulled one back with just eleven minutes remaining before Dwight Gayle nabbed a brace as the game ended 3-3 to deliver our League title hopes a near-decisive blow, two of his five goals past us to date, although we went back to the top of the table with less than a week of the season to go. Victor Moses came off the bench for his 22nd and last reds game on loan from Chelsea.

Happy birthday Yossi
1980 - Israeli midfielder Yossi Benayoun was born in Dimona. He arrived from West Ham United in a £5m deal in July 2007, and bagged 29 goals in 134 reds games, including hat-tricks against Beşiktaş JK, Havant & Waterlooville and Burnley. He was sold to Chelsea in July 2010 for a reported £5m.
1933 – South African half-back Hugh Gerhardi was born. He signed from Johannesburg-based Thistle in August 1952 but only played six senior games before returning to his homeland after just one season.
1994 – Spanish loanee right-back Javier Manquillo was born in Madrid. He arrived from Club Atlético de Madrid in August 2014 for a potential two-year spell, making nineteen senior appearances before returning after a single campaign.

Treble hat-tricks
1990 - John Barnes scored a hat-trick as we came from behind in our 6-1 win at Coventry City, taking him to 22 League goals that season, with Kevin Gallacher bagging the home side’s opener. Ronnie Rosenthal netted a brace, with Ian Rush also on target in our final game of the season, in which we had clinched the title for the eighteenth and most recent time. This was Kenny Dalglish’s 200th League game in charge.

2001 - Michael Owen scored a hat-trick as we beat Newcastle United 3-0 at Anfield in Gérard Houllier’s hundredth League game in sole charge.
1930 – Jimmy Smith struck four times in our 6-0 thumping of Tranmere Rovers in a Birkenhead Hospitals Cup game at Prenton Park. Robert Done converted a penalty, with Dave Wright also netting.

Despair against the Mancs
1928 - We were thrashed 6-1 at Manchester United to end the season in fifteenth, with Joe Spence netting three of his five goals past us. Gordon Hodgson grabbed our goal with Bill Rawlings bagging a brace and Jim Hanson also scoring for the home side. Right-half David McMullan played his 35th and last reds game.
1999 - We also played United, with Jamie Redknapp and ex-United star Paul Ince netting as we came from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Anfield, with Denis Irwin sent off for the Mancs, after converting a penalty. Dwight Yorke had opened the scoring with one of his eight goals against the reds. The Walton Breck Road reverberated to cries of “you lost the League on Merseyside” after the match, which sadly did not prove true.

Defeat at the Cottage
2007 - Papa Bouba Diop was sent off for Fulham as Craig Bellamy played the last game of his first spell at Anfield, with Mark González and Gabriel Paletta also making their final appearances for the reds in our 1-0 defeat that came just four days after we had seen off Chelsea to reach Athens. Harry Kewell played his first game since the previous season’s FA Cup Final, while young left-back Emiliano Insúa played just his second game. Clint Dempsey struck the only goal of the game.

More happy birthdays
2003 – Midfielder Dominic Corness was born in Liverpool. He turned professional in February 2021 and is now playing regularly for the Under-18’s.
1936 - Keeper Bert Slater was born in Musselburgh, Midlothian. He arrived from Falkirk in a swap deal for Tommy Younger in June 1959 and played 111 times, winning a Second Division title medal in 1962, before returning to Scotland to join Dundee that July under the management of his brother Bob.
1881 – Left-half Jim Bradley was born in Goldenhill, Staffordshire. He signed from Stoke in September 1905, helping us to claim the League title in his first season and scoring eight times in 186 reds appearances before joining Reading in June 1911.
1876 - Inside-right George Livingstone was born in Dumbarton. He signed from Celtic in May 1902 and bagged four goals in 32 games the following season. He moved on to Manchester City after just one year at Anfield, helping them to claim the FA Cup in 1904.

Farewell Jimmy
1965 - Club Secretary Jimmy McInnes sadly hanged himself above the Archway Stile, the old turnstile between the Kop and Kemlyn Road stands, just four days after we had claimed the FA Cup for the first time. He had been in this role for a decade, having previously been on our books as a left-half during the Second World War.

Title joy
1951 – Tottenham Hotspur were presented with the championship trophy by Football League President Arthur Drewry, having secured the title in the previous game after being promoted as Second Division champions only the previous season. We lost 3-1 at White Hart Lane that day, with Albert Stubbins on target late on. Sonny Walters struck the first of his four goals against the reds, with Peter Murphy and Len Duquemin also scoring.

The greatest at St. Andrews
1984 - Muhammad Ali was in the crowd to watch us play out a goalless draw at Birmingham City.

Mixed fortunes against the Latics
1993 - We lost a Premiership fixture 3-2 at Oldham Athletic, with Ian Rush on the scoresheet twice at Boundary Park. David James scored an own goal while Don Hutchinson was sent off, our sixth dismissal that season. Darren Beckford and Ian Olney also struck for the home side. This game had originally been postponed back on Boxing Day.
1945 - We beat Oldham 3-2 in a Wartime League match at Anfield. Phil Taylor, Berry Nieuwenhuys and Les Shannon grabbed our goals.

Beginnings and ends
1931 – Right-half Ted Savage signed from Lincoln City for £2,750. He struck twice in 105 reds games, with both his goals coming on his debut! He moved on to Manchester United in December 1937.
1958 - Inside-forward Willie Carlin signed as a professional. He played just one senior game before joining Halifax Town in August 1962, going on to play more than 400 League games for a series of clubs.

1932 – Outside-right Dick Edmed left the reds to join Bolton Wanderers. He signed from his hometown club Gillingham for £1,800 in January 1926 and netted 46 times in 170 reds.
2013 – Forward Alan Arnell died. He had struck 35 times in 75 reds games after arriving from non-league Worthing in March 1953. He stayed with the club until February 1961 when he was sold to Tranmere Rovers.

Award winners
2009 - Steven Gerrard was named the PFA Fans’ Player of the Year, after netting 24 times in 44 outings that season.
2019 – On-loan winger Ryan Kent was named as the PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year after scoring six goals in 43 games in a successful season with Rangers.
2022 - Mohamed Salah was presented with the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year award for the second time in a campaign in which he struck 31 times in 51 outings as he helped us to claim the FA Cup and League Cup, as well as reach another UEFA Champions League Final.

Final victory
1959 – We beat Everton in the Lancashire Senior Cup Final at Anfield, with Billy Liddell nabbing the only goal of the game.

Derby disappointment
2013 – We were held to a goalless draw by Everton at Anfield, with Sylvain Distin having a header ruled out for a Victor Anichebe foul on Pepe Reina.

At the double
2006 - Krisztián Németh bagged a brace for Hungary Under-17’s as they beat Luxembourg 4-0 in the European Championships Finals in Mondorf Les Bains with fellow future red Péter Gulácsi also playing.

Other game on this day
1979 – Phil Neal struck twice as we beat Southampton 2-0 at Anfield.

Miles away
2003 - Ex-reds reserves forward John Miles signed for Macclesfield Town on a free transfer from Crewe Alexandra, following a loan spell.

Roy in charge
1999 - Roy Hodgson was reappointed Manager of Internazionale, in a caretaker role, before returning to Switzerland to coach Grasshopper Club Zürich.

Nuri’s last
2005 – Future reds loanee Nuri Şahin scored his first goal for Turkey Under-17's in their 3-2 defeat of England in a European Championships Finals group game in Italy.

Also in international action
1945 – Future reds keeper Cyril Sidlow played as Wales lost a Wartime International 3-2 to England at Ninian Park.
1954 – Andy Beattie took charge of Scotland for their 1-0 friendly defeat of Norway at Hampden Park. He had guested with the reds during the war, and later joined the backroom staff at Anfield after a successful management career.
1987 – Future red Stig Inge Bjørnebye played for Norway Under-19’s as they beat Scotland 2-0 in Newport.

1990 – Future reds goalkeeping coach Cláudio Taffarel played for Brazil as they beat Bulgaria 2-1 in a friendly in Campinas.
1993 – Future Assistant Manager Christian Damiano took charge of France Under-16’s as they lost 2-1 to Poland after extra time in their European Championships Semi-final in Istanbul.
2000 – Future red Jermaine Pennant played for England Under-16’s in their 2-1 defeat by the Republic of Ireland in Israel.
2002 – Carl Medjani featured for France Under-17’s as they beat Germany on penalties after their European Championships Quarter-final ended 1-1 in Denmark. On the same day, fellow future red was also on the winning side as Switzerland beat Georgia 3-0 in the same competition.