Shankly's first impressions
Friday 2 November 2007
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Bill Shankly celebrates Liverpool's FA Cup victory at Wembley which came during a memorable European Cup campaign (©Getty Images)
Tossed coins, allegations of bribery, snow, fog, some spectacular football – Bill Shankly's first European Champion Clubs' Cup campaign in 1964/65 was as incident packed as any soap opera.
Legend
After making a slew of signings (most notably striker Ian St John and centre-half Ron Yeats, known as Rowdy after the Clint Eastwood character in Rawhide) and blooding young talent like Ian Callaghan and Roger Hunt, Shankly had steered Liverpool to their first league title in 17 years. He then set out, with his usual self-confidence and belief, to win the European Cup. The Reds beat KR Reykjavik 11-1 on aggregate and disposed of RSC Anderlecht 4-0 over two legs before facing 1. FC Köln in a quarter-final tie that has become the stuff of legend for both clubs.
Coin toss
The first game at Anfield was abandoned because of snow. The two sides then drew 0-0 twice and 2-2 in the play-off in Rotterdam to ensure – in the days before penalty shoot-outs – that the tie would be decided by the referee Robert Schaut tossing a disc. If it landed red side up, Liverpool were through, white and Köln had won. Schaut threw the disc and it stood up, stuck in the mud. Liverpool fan Tony Wailey recalls: "Then they tossed again and Ian St John was dancing and being joined by Billy Stevenson and Rowdy. Three Scotsmen all dancing in springtime Rotterdam." Though the Reds were jubilant, Shankly admitted: "They didn't deserve to lose on the toss of a coin. To be honest, Liverpool were not the better team."
FA Cup winnners
His reward was a semi-final tie against FC Internazionale Milano, the reigning European champions. At Anfield, the Italians never recovered from the roar that greeted Gordon Milne and Gerry Byrne parading Liverpool's first and newly won FA Cup around the ground before kick off. The Nerazzurri lost 3-1 – with St John, Hunt and Callaghan scoring fine goals – and were lucky it wasn't more. The Reds had a goal disallowed for offside.
Inter revenge
In the second leg, Liverpool lost 3-0 as Inter seemingly scored directly from a free-kick that had been given as indirect. Spanish striker Joaquín Peiró caught keeper Tommy Lawrence bouncing the ball and stroked it into the net. The tie was, said Shankly, "like a war. Like the Battle of the Bulge. Inter, who were a good side, didn't play well. The atmosphere in Milan affected their players as well. So the game was nothing". Inter were through to a final at their own ground, San Siro, where they beat SL Benfica to clinch their second European Cup in a row – and their last to date.
Heartbreak
Looking back, St John said: "It was heartbreak, because we had a real chance that year, but at least we learned something. If you like, we learned the lessons that helped Liverpool win the European Cup." But by 1977, when the Reds did finally conquer Europe, the architect of their revival, the loquacious charismatic Shankly, had retired.
This article is from the latest edition of Champions Magazine, the Official Magazine of the UEFA Champions League. To subscribe, click here.
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