Welcome to my 20th weekly blog “The Igor Bišćan Hall of
Fame” every week I’ll be adding two new additions, one will be a Liverpool
Legend or fans favourite, the other a Player, Manager or Club who have
contributed to the world game we all love (Gary Neville need not worry). Please
comment below who you’d like to see make the IBHoF, here are this weeks
entries. YNWA
RONNIE WHELAN
1980/81 - 1994/95
At best inspirational, at worst remarkably consistent,
Ronnie Whelan was at the heart of almost every Liverpool triumph of the
eighties. The Eire international's deceptively simple, almost matter-of-fact
midfield method exerted a powerfully pervasive influence which increased with
the passing years.
When the sandy-haired Dubliner breezed into Bob Paisleys
side in 1981, he made an exciting impact with spectacular goals and an
infectious, ambitious style of play which, though exhilarating when Ronnie was
on song, sometimes resulted in the ball being lost unnecessarily. Maturity
taught him to do the simple thing, and to do it well, with the result that he
could be counted on to perform reliably in any company, on any occasion.
When Ronnie - whose father, Ron Snr, also wore the Republic's
green shirt - left Home Farm in October 1979, his destination might have been
Old Trafford rather than Anfield. He had spent three summer holidays with
Manchester United as a schoolboy but was allowed to slip through their
recruitment net. The Red Devils loss was to be Liverpool's gain and, 18 months
after crossing the Irish Sea, he marked his League debut – against Stoke in
front of the Kop - with a goal. It was October 1981, however, before he
outstripped his countryman Kevin Sheedy, who was later to build a successful
career with Everton, in the race to replace Ray Kennedy on the left side of the
Reds' midfield.
In his first campaign as a regular, Ronnie could do little
wrong. As well as picking up a title medal, he scored twice in the Milk Cup victory
over Spurs at Wembley and received a Young Player of the Year award. To cap it
all, no less a judge than Joe Mercer compared him to that great Northern Irish
inside-forward of several decades earlier, Peter Doherty. Ronnie maintained his
progress the following season but suffered a setback in 1983/84 when a hand
injury kept him out of the side until November. On his return he seemed to have
lost impetus and there were fears that he was drifting out of long-term
contention, but the exit of Graeme Souness changed all that.
In the absence of the former skipper, Ronnie tightened up
his game and accepted new responsibility to become a better all-round player
than ever before. His distribution became more efficient, his tackling attained
a keenly abrasive edge, and there was a new purpose about everything he did. As
a bonus, the new Whelan retained his habit of scoring sensational goals, none
more breathtaking than the first-time 25-yard curler past Gary Bailey which
took the 1985 FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United into extra time.
As his medal collection burgeoned, so did his versatility.
At various times he occupied all the midfield positions and filled in
effectively at left-back when Jim Beglin broke his leg in early 1987. Then, in
the subsequent season when costly newcomers were grabbing all the headlines,
Ronnie enjoyed his best term to date. Moving into a central role to create
extra space for John Barnes on the left, he was a revelation, his quickfire
passing and selfless running off the ball winning new and much-deserved acclaim.
His enthusiasm and level-headed approach were rewarded with the captaincy when
Alan Hansen was sidelined for most of 1988/89 and he led the Reds to FA Cup
triumph over Everton at Wembley.
Come 1990, Ronnie was vastly experienced though not yet 30
and he was expected to play a pivotal role as Liverpool sought to extend their
dominance of English football into a new decade. Sadly, his outings over
ensuing seasons were to be curtailed cruelly by injuries, and, surprisingly,
when he was fit he was not always selected by Souness. In September 1994, he
was freed to join Southend United and 10 months later was promoted to
player-boss. After an encouraging start, there followed difficult times at
Roots Hall and come 1997 Ronnie Whelan was seeking a new arena in which to test
his managerial mettle.
BORN: Dublin, Ireland. 25.9.61. GAMES: 459 (17). GOALS: 73.
CLUBS: Home Farm, Liverpool, Southend United 94/5-95/6 (34,
1).
HONOURS: European Cup 83/4. League Championship 81/2, 82/3,
83/4, 85/6, 87/8, 89/90. FA Cup 85/6, 88/9. League Cup 81/2, 82/3, 83/4.
INERNATIONAL CAREER: 53 Republic of Ireland caps (81-95).
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GIANNI RIVERA
Few players have divided Italian public opinion more sharply
than Gianni Rivera, the slim, skilful inside-forward known as 'The Golden Boy'.
Many considered him to be the country's outstanding player of his era, a 'must'
for the national side; others thought he was over-rated, over-indulged and
distinctly lacking in courage. The result was that this stylish midfielder
never really received the recognition he deserved.
Rivera moved with such poise that he seemed to float through
matches on a cushion of air. His range of passing was unrivalled in Italy at
the time and he possessed the ability to unlock the most fortress-like defence
with one penetrating ball. And whilst he may have shirked the odd tackle, who
could blame him, given the predominance of hatchet men in Italy in the 1960s?
Gianni Rivera was born in the Valle San Bartolomeo, a
province of Alessandria, and it was with Alessandria that he made his Serie A
debut against Inter Milan in June 1959. During that summer he was spotted by AC
Milan's general manager Giuseppe Viani playing in an exhibition training game.
It is said that Viani thought he was seeing double as the Uruguayan Juan
Schiaffino - who had been rated one of the top five players in the world - was
also playing and the two midfielders looked very similar in both physique and
talent. Suitably impressed, Milan arranged for Rivera to join them at the end
of the following season.
Rivera had played only 26 games for Alessandria (scoring six
goals) so it was quite a step up but he took it all in his elegant stride. In
only his second season in Milan, the eighteen-year-old helped the club to the
League title and a year later he played a major part in the 2-1 European Cup
Final victory over Benfica at Wembley, providing the pass for José Altafini to
equalise Eusebio's goal. The next few years saw a downturn in fortunes for both
Milan and Rivera, winning only the Coppa Italia in 1967. But the next year,
with Rivera as captain, the club captured both the League title and the
European Cup Winners' Cup. Further success followed in 1969 with a second
European Cup (beating Ajax 4-1 in the final) and Rivera being voted European
Footballer of the Year - the first native-born Italian to win the prestigious
Ballon d'Or award.
Having helped an under-strength Italy to fourth place at the
1960 Rome Olympics, Rivera had made his debut with the full national side in
1962. He went on to play in four World Cup tournaments. He escaped blame for
the poor showing in 1962 but was made a scapegoat for Italy's disastrous defeat
at the hands of North Korea in 1966. Coach Ferruccio Valcareggi chose to leave
Rivera out of the opening games in 1970 but he made his mark when coming on as
substitute in the semi-final against West Germany, first committing the error
that allowed Gerd Müller to tie the score at 3-3 and then scoring Italy's
dramatic winner. Nevertheless he only appeared for the last six minutes of the
final against Brazil. When the beaten finalists returned home they were greeted
in true Italian fashion with a bombardment of rotten tomatoes, the exception
being Rivera who was cheered by supporters puzzled as to why he had not been
allowed to play a greater part in the tournament.
Rivera remained with Milan until 1979, scoring a total of
124 goals in 501 matches. During the seventies he picked up another European
Cup Winners' Cup medal, a third League title and three more Italian Cups. He
finished Serie A top scorer in 1973 (with seventeen goals) but in the same year
accused the establishment and referees of colluding against Milan and favouring
Juventus - remarks that led to a heavy fine and suspension. Given his aptitude
for stirring up controversy, it came as no surprise when he went into Italian
politics.
BORN: Valle San Bartolomeo, Italy. 18.8.43.
CLUBS: 1959–1960 Alessandria, 1960–1979 AC Milan.
INERNATIONAL CAREER: Italy 1962–1974, Caps 60, Goals 14.
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The Igor Bišćan Hall of Fame welcomes you both. YNWA
