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John Barnes
| Category: | Male Player |
| Year Inducted: | 2005 |
Profile by Robert Galvin, the author of Football's Greatest Heroes, the official book of the National Football Museum Hall of Fame:
John Barnes joined a select group when he was named Footballer of the Year for the second time. Only four other players – Stanley Matthews, Tom Finney, Danny Blanchflower and Kenny Dalglish – had previously been two-time winners.
Bobby Robson, who awarded him the bulk of his 79 England caps, described Barnes as ‘a match-winner' and a vital member of both his World Cup finals squad, in 1986 and 1990.
A remarkable run and dribble through the Brazil defence during a friendly in Rio de Janeiro in 1984 enhanced his reputation both here and abroad. ‘I loved that goal,' he said later. One Brazilian newspaper described his individual effort ‘as the greatest goal ever scored at the Maracana'. Zico, the great Brazil number 10, declared that ‘Barnes is the future of English football'.
Bertie Mee, who guided Arsenal to the Double in 1970-71, looked to the past in his praise, likening Barnes' dribbling ability to that of Finney, the Preston and England winger. Mee said: ‘John has the same way of gliding past his marker.'
A prominent figure in the rise of Watford in the early 1980s, Barnes was a member of the promotion-winning side of 1981-82. Watford finished runners-up the following season, during which Barnes made his England debut. One year on again, he played in a losing FA Cup Final.
Following his transfer to Anfield for a fee of £900,000 in 1987, Barnes was voted Footballer of the Year, as Liverpool won another title – a ‘double' repeated by player and club in 1989-90. The sporadic and shameful racial abuse that greeted his arrival in the city had been drowned out, with neutrals joining the Kop in praising his ability, and the dignified manner of his triumph over bigotry.
His popularity was further enhanced in 1990 when he performed a rap (‘You've got to hold and give, do it at the right time') on the official England World Cup song. World in Motion , by New Order, was a huge hit, but it was never Barnes' favourite football song. ‘I thought Anfield Rap , the song I did with the other Liverpool players, was better,' he wrote later.
The Liverpool passing game suited him to the ground. So much so, Barnes always thought of himself as a better, more effective player for his club than his country. ‘I often felt inhibited with England,' he said.
There were highlights, however: notably his performance as a late substitute in 1986 when he almost single-handedly rescued the quarter-final against Argentina. But in other England games, in his own words, he found himself ‘marooned on the wing a lot, feeling frustrated'.
‘I never saw myself as just that for Liverpool,' Barnes said. ‘I was a more all-round player. In one season I scored 22 goals in 34 League games.' Tactically, he also acted as a vital link between defence and attack.
Alan Hansen had previously looked for Dalglish when distributing the ball from the back. Now he had a new outlet. ‘John's first touch was so good, it didn't really matter if he was closely marked. I gave him the ball anyway.'
After a decade at Anfield, where he operated in a deeper, anchor role in midfield in his latter years, Barnes had stints at Newcastle United and Charlton Athletic.