‘I wanted Liverpool to lose when I was benched at Anfield’: Ex-Red
Liverpool have always had dressing rooms full of amazing players and that has led to many having to sit out, leading to some ill feeling towards the starting 11.
Speaking on The Football Historian Podcast, David Fairclough admitted: “I would say most of the time I’ve been happy to see Liverpool win and happy to celebrate.
“And winning the European Cup in ’81 was a big thrill for everybody, I didn’t think of the medal in that time.
“Well, one or two occasions in the past, I have to admit to moments where I wanted Liverpool to to come unstuck because I wasn’t there and I felt that I should have been.
“And I thought, ‘well, I hope they get beat today.’
“But it was in a situation that most of the time was, maybe the Man United Cup final [FA Cup 1977] was the bitterest I’ve ever felt but the rest of the time, I was always happy for them to win, even though I wasn’t there.
“I’m a Liverpool fan at the end of the day.”
Known as ‘super sub’, the forward had a reputation for coming onto the pitch and scoring crucial goals for the Reds but wasn’t always happy that his performances didn’t lead to more minutes.
Although this may be shocking to hear, you can somewhat empathise with a player desperate to impress and feeling his performances for his boyhood club were being overlooked.
David Fairclough didn’t want to be a super sub for Liverpool
The now 68-year-old is most famous for his goal, off the bench, against Saint-Etienne in 1977 but it was this impact as a substitute that meant Bob Paisley kept using this game plan.
In seven seasons at Anfield, the forward played 154 games, 92 were starts and 62 off the bench, scoring 55 times, 37 from the start and 18 off the bench – showing no clear advantage to being used as a sub.
This is the mentality of an elite athlete and perhaps the only surprising thing here is that the Scouser has been bold enough to admit his true feelings at the time.
You can watch Fairclough’s comments on Liverpool (from 57:43) via The Football Historian Podcast on YouTube:
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