3rd September

The reds start out
1892 - We played our first ever competitive fixture, trouncing Higher Walton 8-0 in a Lancashire League fixture at Anfield, in front of a crowd of just 200. Jock Smith, Joe McQue and James Cameron all netted braces, with Malcolm McVean and John McBride also notching. West Derby-born Joe Pearson was the only non-Scot in this ‘Team of the Macs’, playing his only reds game.

1898 - We stepped out in red for the first time, as we beat The Wednesday 4-0 at Anfield, with centre-half Alex Raisbeck making his debut. We had played in blue and white quartered shirts until then. Left-half Bill Goldie bagged his first reds goal with Hugh Morgan, John Walker and Tommy Robertson also on the scoresheet that day.
1952 - We also played the Owls, beating Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 at Hillsborough thanks to goals from Kevin Baron and Billy Liddell.
2008 – Steve Cooper joined the Academy as an Under-12’s Coach, moving up to becoming Academy Manager in July 2011. He moved on to the FA two years later.

Happy birthday Le Ex-Boss
1947 - Gérard Houllier was born in Therouanne in France. He was appointed as joint Manager alongside Roy Evans in July 1998, taking over sole charge four months later. He led us to the UEFA Cup, FA Cup, two League Cups, UEFA Super Cup and FA Charity Shield before leaving by mutual consent in May 2004. He then went on to lead Olympique Lyonnais to two straight League titles.

Other birthdays
1937 - Left-half Tommy Leishman was born in Stenhousemuir. He had won the Scottish Cup with St. Mirren, signing for £10,000 in November 1949. He helped us back to the First Division in 1962, although he then only made eleven top-flight appearances before returning north of the border, to Hibernian, in January 1963 after a total of seven goals in 118 reds games, including our first ever League Cup strike.

2002 – Forward Layton Stewart was born in Liverpool. He was with the reds since the age of seven, signing as a professional in February 2020, making his only senior appearance off the bench in our League Cup tie against Derby County in November 2022. He moved on to Preston North End in July 2023.
2003 – Keeper Harvey Davies was also born in Liverpool. He has been with the reds since the age of nine, featuring on the bench in four UEFA Champions League fixtures during 2020/21 and the following campaign.

1985 - Former second choice keeper Scott Carson was born in Whitehaven. He made just nine senior reds appearances following his arrival from Leeds United for £750,000 in January 2005, but only managed to keep two clean sheets. He was sold to West Bromwich Albion for £3.25m in July 2008, after seasons on loan at first Charlton Athletic and then Aston Villa.
1964 - 1980’s Irish reserve midfielder Ken DeMange was born in Dublin. He never made a senior appearance while at Anfield, despite winning full international honours during that time.
1977 - Phil Brazier was born in Liverpool. The defender skippered us to victory in the FA Youth Cup in 1996.

Derby stalemate
2022 – We shared a goalless draw with Everton at Goodison Park with both sides hitting the woodwork.

Red departures
1958 – Scottish inside-forward Tom Miller died. He netted 56 times in 146 reds games after signing from Hamilton Academical for £400 in February 1912, including an appearance in the 1914 FA Cup Final. However, he is also remembered as being one of the players caught up in the Manchester United match-rigging scandal of 1915, whom he joined in September 1920.His brother John was on the reds books alongside him immediately after the First World War.

1966 - Centre-half John Nicholson died in a car crash, just one day after his thirtieth birthday. He signed with the reds as a professional in January 1957, but only played one senior game before joining Port Vale in August 1961, playing over 200 games for them.
1995 – Right-winger Alex Muir died. He signed from Lochgelly Violet in July 1947, the same club that Billy Liddell was signed from. He only played four senior games before joining South Liverpool in 1949.

Bert at the wrong end
1969 – Ex-reds keeper Bert Slater put through his own net as we won a League Cup Second Round tie 2-1 at Watford, with Ian St. John bagging the winner, the club’s 5,000th goal in all competitions.

Most recently
2023 – We beat Aston Villa 3-0 at Anfield in what was Jürgen Klopp’s 300th League game in charge. Dominik Szoboszlai opened the scoring early on with his first goal for the club, before Matty Cash deflected a Darwin Núñez strike that had come back off the post into his own net. Mohamed Salah scored in his 150th different game for the reds after the break to complete the scoring.

1988 - Jan Mølby netted the only goal of our home fixture with Manchester United from the spot, with Nigel Spackman also hitting the woodwork.
1947 - We also entertained United, with Albert Stubbins on target in our 2-2 top-flight draw and Jack Balmer converting a penalty. Cyril Sidlow saved a spot-kick taken by United’s Jack Rowley. Stan Pearson bagged one of his eleven strikes past us, with Charlie Mitten netting one of his five.

A goalscoring debut
1958 - Inside-forward Alan Banks scored on his reds debut as we thumped Brighton & Hove Albion 5-0 in a home Second Division fixture, with Alan Arnell nabbing a brace and Jimmy Harrower and right-back John Molyneux also netting. Outside-right Fred Morris also made his reds bow that day.
1960 - We also entertained the Seagulls, with Jimmy Harrower on target twice in a 2-0 victory.

1955 - Molyneux made his reds bow as we drew 3-3 at Blackburn Rovers. Alan Arnell struck a brace with Billy Liddell also on target for the reds. Eddie Crossan bagged a brace for the home side, with Bob Langton also on target.
1932 - Centre-half Tom ‘Tiny’ Bradshaw grabbed the first of his four reds goals in our 4-3 defeat at Newcastle United. Gordon Hodgson scored from the spot with Ted Crawford bagging his fourth and final reds goal, our 2,000th in top-flight football, as right-back Willie Steel put through his own net for one of the Geordies’ goals. Tommy Lang scored one of his four goals past us, with Jack Allen scoring the last of his five and Harry McMenemy also on the scoresheet.

Razor’s ton
1977 - Ray Kennedy reached a century of League appearances for the reds, scoring the only goal very early on at Birmingham City.

Robbo in charge
2018 – Left-back Andy Robertson was appointed captain of Scotland. On the same day, Jordan Henderson signed a new contract with the reds.

Gems on their way
2001 - Liverpool agreed a deal to sign Le Havre’s two young gems, Anthony Le Tallec and Florent Sinama-Pongolle, for a combined £6m fee, although they would remain in France for another two years. Sinama-Pongolle bagged nine goals in 66 reds games, while his compatriot netted just once in 32 games, and neither remains with the club.
2019 – Northern Irish right-back Conor Bradley signed from Dungannon Swifts. He struck once in 28 senior reds appearances to the end of the 2023/24 season, already helping us to claim the League Cup.

Zico foiled
1983 - Phil Neal had a penalty saved, although we were still able to beat Nottingham Forest at Anfield thanks to an Ian Rush goal. We have faced Forest twice more on this day in history in the top flight.
1963 - Our City Ground encounter ended goalless, as we started this title-winning season with just three points from our opening four fixtures.
1985 - Ronnie Whelan bagged a brace as we won 2-0 at Anfield.

Ironed out
1956 - We drew 1-1 at Upton Park in a Second Division meeting, with Billy Liddell on the scoresheet. Forward John Evans made his hundredth reds appearance in this game. Future Manchester United boss Frank O’Farrell struck for the home side.
1966 - Geoff Strong netted as we again held West Ham United to a draw in the East End, with Geoff Hurst on the scoresheet for the Irons, one of his nine goals against us. Tommy Smith reached a century of reds outings in this match.
1962 - Our other trip to face the Hammers on this day in history ended in defeat, with winger Tony Scott nabbing the only goal of the game.
2008 – Future reds First Team Coach Kevin Keen was appointed Caretaker Manager at West Ham for the second time after Alan Curbishley’s resignation. He was in charge for just one game, a 3-2 defeat at West Bromwich Albion before Gianfranco Zola took over.

Starting off badly
1910 - We kicked off the season with a defeat, when Jimmy Stewart nabbed our consolation as Bradford City won 2-1 at Anfield. Reserves custodian Augustus Beeby had to step in between the sticks due to Sam Hardy’s damaged wrist.

Final strike
1894 – Winger Patrick Gordon netted his eighth and final reds goal in our 3-3 top-flight draw at Burnley. Hugh McQueen and Harry Bradshaw also scored.

Bad Bhoy
1895 – We faced Celtic for the first time in our history, winning an Anfield friendly 2-0 thanks to goals from George Allan and Frank Becton. Tommy Morrison from the visitors was sent off in the second half for dissent.

Young reds
1999 - Steven Gerrard scored on his debut for England Under-21’s as they beat Luxembourg 5-0 in a European Championships qualifier at the Madejski Stadium in Reading. Jamie Carragher and future red Emile Heskey also started, while David Thompson came on as a substitute. On the same day, Frode Kippe scored in Norway Under-21’s 2-1 qualifying win over Greece, with future red John Arne Riise also in action.
2010 – Danny Wilson played for Scotland Under-21’s in their 1-1 European Championships qualifying draw in Belarus, while future red Daniel Sturridge scored as England won their qualifier at the same level 1-0 in Portugal, with fellow future red Jordan Henderson also featuring and future reds Christian Benteke and Simon Mignolet also in international action.

2011 – Wilson featured for the senior side for the fifth and final time as Scotland drew 2-2 with the Czech Republic in a Euro 2012 qualifier at Hampden Park, with Charlie Adam and ex-red Milan Baroš also in action.
2015 – Joe Gomez and Jordon Ibe both made their debuts for England Under-21’s as they beat USA Under-23’s 1-0 at Deepdale. Meanwhile, Gini Wijnaldum won his first senior cap for the Netherlands as a Newcastle United player in their 1-0 defeat by Iceland in a European Championships qualifier in Amsterdam. Divock Origi played for Belgium that day as they beat Bosnia-Herzegovina 3-1 in another qualifier in Brussels.
2021 – Josh Davidson debuted for England Under-17’s as they beat Romania 2-0 in a friendly in Poland.

Recent internationals
2017 – Dejan Lovren featured in Croatia’s 1-0 World Cup qualifying defeat of Kosovo in Zagreb, while Gini Wijnaldum played as the Netherlands beat Bulgaria 3-1 in Amsterdam. Future red Xherdan Shaqiri and ex-red Péter Gulácsi also played in qualifiers that day, while ex-red Bernard Diomède took charge of France Under-19’s.
2014 – Daniel Agger converted a penalty while winning the first cap of his second spell with Brøndby IF, as Denmark lost a friendly 2-1 to Turkey in Odense. Meanwhile, Roy Hodgson’s England beat Norway 1-0 at Wembley, with Jordan Henderson, Rickie Lambert, Raheem Sterling, Daniel Sturridge and future reds James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all featuring. Jordan Rossiter won his only cap for England Under-18’s as they beat the Netherlands 4-1 in Leigh, with future red Dominic Solanke also debuting at this level and Sheyi Ojo also in action. Ex-reds Robbie Keane and Javier Mascherano also featured in friendlies that day.

2010 – Fernando Torres netted his last two goals for Spain as a reds player as they won a Euro 2012 qualifier 4-0 in Liechtenstein. Raul Meireles was on target while playing for Portugal as a red for the first time, in their 4-4 draw with Cyprus. Dirk Kuyt converted a penalty as the Netherlands thumped San Marino 5-0 in Serravalle. Ex-red Sami Hyypiä was sent off while skippering Finland to a 2-0 defeat in Moldova. Craig Bellamy skippered Wales while winning his first cap on loan at Cardiff City from Manchester City in their 1-0 defeat in Montenegro, John Toshack’s last game in charge of his country. James Milner played for England for the first time since moving to Manchester City, with Steven Gerrard, Glen Johnson, Milan Jovanović, Martin Škrtel, future reds Christian Benteke, Ragnar Klavan and Xherdan Shaqiri, and ex-reds Xabi Alonso, Robbie Keane, Jari Litmanen, Carl Medjani, Nikolay Mihaylov and John Arne Riise also featuring in qualifiers that day.

First and last caps
2004 - Xabi Alonso won his first cap as a reds player, and thirteenth to date, as Spain were held to a 1-1 draw by Scotland at the Estadio Ciutat de València, although the game was postponed after 59 minutes due to floodlight failure. This was the first ever senior international staged at this ground, with future red Fernando Torres captaining the side for the first time. Meanwhile, Bolo Zenden won his only cap while permanently with Middlesbrough as the Netherlands beat Liechtenstein 3-0 in Utrecht, with future red Dirk Kuyt winning his first cap. Future red Daniel Agger won his first Under-21’s cap as Denmark beat Ukraine 3-2 in Farum in a European Championships qualifier. Also in Under-21’s action that day were Darren Potter and future reds Ramon Calliste, Scott Carson, Stewart Downing, James Milner, Gary O’Neil and Jermaine Pennant.

1975 - David Johnson won his third cap, and final one as an Ipswich Town player, in England’s 2-1 European Championships qualifying win in Switzerland. Ray Clemence and Kevin Keegan both also played. Future red Kenny Dalglish played for Scotland as they lost 1-0 in Denmark on the same day.
1992 - Future reds keeper Brad Friedel made his senior international debut for the USA in their 2-0 friendly defeat of Canada in St. John’s.
2006 - Javier Mascherano played his first international while with West Ham United as Argentina lost a friendly 3-0 to Brazil at the Emirates Stadium.

2011 – Mohamed Salah made his senior international debut in Egypt’s 2-1 defeat in an African Cup of Nations qualifier in Sierra Leone, with fellow future red featuring as Algeria drew another qualifier 1-1 in Tanzania.
2016 - Sadio Mané won his first cap as a red in Senegal’s 2-0 defeat of Namibia in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Dakar, with ex-red Victor Moses playing in Nigeria’s 1-0 win over Tanzania in Uyo on the same day, while Abel Xavier took charge of Mozambique.
2020 – Neco Williams debuted for Wales as they won a UEFA Nations League group game 1-0 in Finland, with Harry Wilson also featuring. Emre Can won his first cap as a Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e.V. Dortmund player as Germany drew 1-1 with Spain in Stuttgart, with future red Dominik Szoboszlai netting the only goal of Hungary’s trip to Turkey. Future red Thiago Alcântara and ex-red Péter Gulácsi also played in the UEFA Nations League that day.
2021 - Luke Chambers, Kaide Gordon and Lee Jonas all debuted for England Under-18’s in their 1-1 draw with Wales in Newport, with Melkamu Frauendorf featuring for Germany at the same level as they beat Austria 3-1 in the Czech Republic. On the same day, ex-red Bernard Diomède took charge of France Under-20’s as they shared a goalless friendly draw with Norway Under-19’s in Clairefontaine-en-Yvelines.

Also in international action
2005 - Momo Sissoko won his first cap as a reds player, netting his second and final goal for his country in Mali’s 2-0 defeat of Congo in a World Cup qualifier in Bamako, with Djimi Traoré also in the side. Fernando Morientes struck his first international goal since moving to Anfield, with Xabi Alonso, Luis García, Pepe Reina and future red Fernando Torres all also featuring in Spain’s 2-1 friendly defeat of Canada in Santander. Meanwhile Yossi Benayoun won his first cap while with West Ham United, playing against future red Philipp Degen’s Switzerland in Basel.

Djibril Cissé bagged a brace as France beat the Faroe Islands 3-0 in a qualifier in Lens, with El-Hadji Diouf grabbing his first goal as a Bolton Wanderers player as Senegal won 1-0 in Zambia. Milan Baroš won his first cap as an Aston Villa player as the Czech Republic lost 2-0 in Romania, with ex-red Vladimír Šmicer also featuring. Jamie Carragher made his first start in a competitive England fixture as he won his nineteenth cap, with future red Joe Cole bagging the only goal in Wales, who were managed by John Toshack. Also representing their countries on this day were Steven Gerrard, Sami Hyypiä, ex-red Daniel Sjölund, and future reds Daniel Agger, Jan Kromkamp, Dirk Kuyt, Christian Poulsen, Martin Škrtel and Andriy Voronin.

2006 – Future red Nikolay Mihaylov played for Bulgaria Under-21’s in their 2-1 defeat of Croatia in a European Championships qualifier in Sofia.
2000 – Future red Yossi Benayoun featured in Israel’s 2-0 victory over Liechtenstein in a Wor Cup qualifier in Tel-Aviv.
1995 – Ex-red Jim Magilton appeared for Northern Ireland as they drew a European Championships qualifier 1-1 in Portugal.
1989 – Future reds goalkeeping coach Cláudio Taffarel played for Brazil in their 2-0 defeat of Chile in a World Cup qualifier in Rio de Janeiro.
1985 – Ex-red Avi Cohen and future red Ronnie Rosenthal both represented Israel in their 6-0 World Cup thumping of Taiwan in Tel-Aviv.

Alberto in action
2004 – Alberto Aquilani won his first Italy Under-21’s cap as a Roma player in their 2-0 European Championships qualifying defeat of Norway in Trapani, netting his first goal at this level.
2002 – He featured for the Under-19’s as they drew 1-1 with Belgium.

2004 – Future red Raul Meireles netted for Portugal Under-21’s as they won a European Championships qualifier 2-1 in Latvia.

On the move
1993 - Reserves forward Lee Jones joined Crewe Alexandra on loan, netting once in eight appearances.
2003 - Ex-reserves midfielder Phil Charnock was released by Bury after just three games for the Shakers.
2011 - Albert Riera joined Galatasaray from Olympiacos for €3m, after six goals in 28 outings as they claimed the League title.
2012 - Raul Meireles left Chelsea for Fenerbahçe Spor Kulübü for €10m, after six goals in 48 outings for the Blues.
2014 – Future Assistant Manager Sean O’Driscoll was appointed Manager of England Under-19’s, a position he left to move to Anfield in July 2015.
2018 – Ex-reds forward Samed Yeşil signed for KFC Uerdingen 05, moving on the following July after just ten minutes of first-team action.

Back to England
1995 - Ex-red Mike Marsh signed for Southend United from Galatasaray for £500,000. He played nearly a hundred times for the Shrimpers, before being forced into retirement.

Other reds games
1986 – We lost 2-1 at Leicester City. Kenny Dalglish netted a late consolation after future red Gary McAllister and Russell Osman had scored.
1949 – Albert Stubbins struck twice as we won 2-1 at Arsenal, before Doug Lishman bagged the first of his four goals against the reds late on.
1938 – We lost 1-0 at Preston North End.

1927 – Aston Villa held us to a goalless draw at Anfield.
1921 – Billy Matthews and Dick Forshaw netted as we beat Sunderland 2-1 in L4, before Charlie Buchan grabbed one of his 21 goals past us.
1904 – Glossop held us to a 2-2 draw in a Second Division meeting at home, with Arthur Goddard and Joe Hewitt on target.