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Graeme Souness receives the award from his hero, Dave Mackay. (Souness and Mackay attended the same Edinburgh school.) |
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Graeme Souness
| Category: | Male Player |
| Year Inducted: | 2007 |
Profile by Robert Galvin, the author of Football's Greatest Heroes, the official book of the National Football Museum Hall of Fame:
A commanding midfielder of deft touch and crunching intent, Graeme Souness was the most successful Liverpool captain in history, an inspirational figure whose departure challenged the Anfield doctrine that no player is irreplaceable.
Soon after arriving at Liverpool for a record fee, the Scot delivered the incisive pass that set up Kenny Dalglish for the winning goal in the 1978 European Cup final against Bruges at Wembley Stadium.
With his last kick in the red of Liverpool, six years later, the owner of the famous moustache in football converted a vital penalty as the Reds won Europe's most prestigious club competition for a fourth time.
A dictatorial, all-pervading midfield presence, Souness combined skill and aggression in equal measure. He was abrasive and calculating, clever and precise. Possession was sought with a relentless ferocity; then, once won, Souness turned creator, spearing passes in all directions. ‘ Graeme has got vision and he ' s got strength, ' Bob Paisley said, with typical succinctness.
Never one to lack belief in his own ability, Souness began his career at Tottenham Hotspur, whose manager at the time, Bill Nicholson, compared him to Dave Mackay the great Spurs leader of the 1960s.
At the age of 17, Graeme Souness was compared by Bill Nicholson, the Tottenham manager who signed the Scot, to Dave Mackay, the great Spurs leader of the 1960s.
Convinced that he merited a first-team place, despite his youth and inexperience, Souness became impatient at his lack of progress at White Hart Lane. A transfer to Middlesbrough secured first-team football, under the tutelage of Jack Charlton, the Boro manager. Charlton put him in the middle of the park and told him to keep things simple. Boro duly won promotion to the top flight in 1973-74; and Souness now had the stage he wanted.
His performances over the next four years alerted Liverpool, and a s soon as Middlesbrough decided to cash in, Bob Paisley moved swiftly, finalising the deal within a matter of minutes. The fee of £352,000 was a record cash deal between English clubs.
The 24-year-old made an immediate impact at Anfield. His first goal – a stunning left-foot volley from distance into the top corner against Manchester United in January 1978 – endeared him to the Kop.
At his peak, Souness embodied the Liverpool side that dominated English football during the Paisley era.
Nicknamed ‘Champagne Charlie' on account of his extravagant lifestyle off the pitch, Souness combined toughness and determination with style and panache – just like Liverpool. Paisley saw in him a touch of arrogance, a quality he thought essential in a captain. ‘It wouldn't surprise me if Graeme tossed up before the game with a gold-plated credit card rather than a coin,' Paisley said.
As captain of Liverpool, the implacable Scot refused to be intimidated, no matter the provocation or threats. He also demanded the highest standards, otherwise ‘tea cups would fly in the dressing-room', team-mate Ian Rush said.
In 1983-84, his last and most memorable season at Anfield, before his transfer to the Scot scored the winning goal in the League Cup final, the first part of an unprecedented treble. In seven seasons at Anfield, Souness helped Liverpool win 12 major trophies, including five titles and three European Cups.
In their heyday, Liverpool always seemed to seamlessly replace their best players, most notably when Dalglish took over from Kevin Keegan in 1977. But when Souness left for Sampdoria in 1984, he left a void that could not be filled immediately. ‘Graeme was the top man,' Ian Rush said. ‘Simply irreplaceable.' Dalglish, meanwhile, would describe Souness as ‘one of the greatest players in the history of Liverpool Football Club'.