28th August

In rides Crazy Horse
1947 - Emlyn Hughes was born in Barrow-in-Furness. ‘Crazy Horse’ played 665 times in his twelve years at Anfield after signing from Blackpool for a club record £65,000 in February 1967, netting 49 times and winning two European Cups, four League titles, two UEFA Cups, FA Cup, UEFA Super Cup and two FA Charity Shields before joining Wolverhampton Wanderers for £90,000 in August 1979. His greatest season was probably 1976/77 when he captained the side to within a whisker of a unique treble, as well as being voted the Football Writers’ Player of the Year. Sadly, he died in November 2004, aged just 57.

God’s rapid-fire hat-trick
1994 - Robbie Fowler scored a hat-trick in a five-minute first-half spell as we beat Arsenal 3-0 at Anfield, in front of just 30,017 in the first game after the Kop became all seated.
1999 - He also struck as we again beat the Gunners 2-0 at Anfield, with Patrik Berger also on the scoresheet as Dominic Matteo reached a century of League outings for the reds.
1967 - We also played them, going down 2-0 at Highbury. Jon Sammels scored with Tony Hateley putting through his own net.

On the way in
2017 – Midfielder Naby Keïta agreed to sign from RasenBallsport Leipzig e.V. the following July for £52.75m. He struck eleven times in 129 outings for the reds as he struggled with a succession of injuries, but he managed to help us claim the League title, FA Cup, League Cup and FIFA Club World Cup before departing for SV Werder Bremen in June 2023.

Double Latin debutants
2007 - Brazilian midfielder Lucas Leiva and Argentine winger Sebastián Leto both made their reds bows as we thumped Toulouse 4-0 in the second leg of our Champions League qualifier at Anfield, to progress 5-0 on aggregate. Peter Crouch and skipper Sami Hyypiä both netted before Dirk Kuyt added a late brace as we secured our fiftieth home win in Europe’s premier competition. Before the match, the Z-Cars theme was played in tribute to the recently-murdered Rhys Jones, whose parents and brother were present on the touchline in their Everton shirts, on a day when the city of Liverpool celebrated its 800th birthday.

Most recently
2021 – Kai Havertz headed Chelsea ahead at Anfield, but Mohamed Salah equalised from the spot on the stroke of half time, with Reece James sent off for handling in the area as the game ended 1-1.

The doc off the mark
1976 – We lost 2-1 at Birmingham City, with David Johnson nabbing his first reds goal.

Double centurion
1993 - Ian Rush grabbed his 200th League goal as we beat Leeds United 2-0 at Anfield in the Premiership. Jan Mølby netted the other as Mike Marsh played his 101st and final reds game.

Dirk the best of Dutch
2006 - Dirk Kuyt was named Dutch Player of the Year, shortly after his £9m move from Feyenoord to Anfield. He had been made their skipper that season, as he scored 25 times in 38 games in all competitions.

Javier the champion
2004 - Future red Javier Mascherano helped Argentina to claim Olympic gold as they beat Paraguay 1-0 in the Final in Athens. Paraguay had both Emilio Martínez and Diego Figueredo sent off.

The new Kemlyn
1963 - We played in front of the new Kemlyn Road cantilever stand for the first time, while part of the Anfield Road terracing was unavailable due to structural work. Unfortunately, we lost 2-1 to Nottingham Forest, with Forest’s Bob McKinlay scoring for the reds, the fiftieth time we had benefited from an own goal to date in the League.

Bruce at last
1984 - Bruce Grobbelaar won his final senior international cap as Zimbabwe lost 1-0 in the first leg of a World Cup qualifier in Egypt.

Other trebles
1926 - Gordon Hodgson opened the scoring before Dick Forshaw bagged a treble against Manchester United for the second successive season, as we won 4-2 in our season opener at Anfield, with winger Dick Edmed making his reds bow. Frank McPherson bagged a brace for the visitors.
1937 - George Mills scored a hat-trick for Chelsea in their 6-1 thumping of the reds as we started the season badly, the last of his four goals past us. Ted Harston netted our consolation on his reds debut, with left-back Barney Ramsden also making his reds bow. Harry Burgess bagged one of his nine strikes past the reds, with Billy Mitchell and Jimmy Argue also on target.

1943 - Jack Balmer bagged three as we beat Manchester City 4-1 in our opening Wartime League fixture of the season with Cyril Done also on target.
1920 - We also started a new campaign against City, with Tom Miller nabbing a brace and Walter Wadsworth scoring his first reds goal in our 4-2 Anfield victory. Donald McKinlay also struck, with Tommy Browell bagging one of his seven goals against us and Ernest Goodwin also netting.

Other debutants
2002 - Salif Diao made his official reds bow in our 2-2 draw at Blackburn Rovers, with Rovers substitute Corrado Grabbi nabbing a late equaliser after Danny Murphy and John Arne Riise had put us in front, following David Dunn’s opener.
1990 - Roy Keane made his debut in English football as Nottingham Forest lost 2-0 at Anfield, thanks to goals from Ian Rush and Peter Beardsley as Ronnie Whelan played his 300th League game for the reds.

Thumping the Mackems
1948 – Billy Watkinson netted his second and last goal for the club with Billy Liddell, Willie Fagan and Jack Balmer also scoring as we beat Sunderland 4-0 at Anfield.

Other birthday boys
1929 - Forward John Evans was born in Tilbury in Essex. He was signed at the fourth attempt from Charlton Athletic in December 1953 for £12,500, but we suffered relegation in his first season at Anfield. His greatest moment with the reds came when he netted all our goals in a 5-3 defeat of Bristol Rovers in September 1954. Overall, he struck 53 times in 107 reds games before joining Colchester United in December 1957, including a goal on his 25th birthday as we lost 3-2 in a Second Division fixture at Derby County, with Louis Bimpson also on target. Jimmy Dunn bagged the last of his four goals against the reds, with Geoff Barrowcliffe and Tommy Powell also scoring.
1993 – Academy defender Jakub Sokolík was born in Ostrava in the Czech Republic. He joined the reds in 2009, signing on as a professional four years later. He was released at the end of the 2013/14 season, signing on with Yeovil Town in June 2014.

Rob bows out
1999 - Rob Jones was released by West Ham United, just six weeks after leaving Anfield for one final throw of the dice. He had played 243 times for the reds, famously without notching a goal, before suffering a succession of back problems.

In charge
2004 - Ian Rush was appointed Manager of Chester City. He only led them to fourteen victories in 41 games in his one season in charge.
1999 - Steve Clarke took over as Caretaker Manager of Newcastle United after Ruud Gullit’s resignation, although he only took charge of one game, a 5-1 thumping at Manchester United.

Other reds games
1982 – Sammy Lee scored a free kick with Phil Neal converting a penalty as we beat West Bromwich Albion 2-0 at Anfield.
1978 – We lost 1-0 at Sheffield United in a League Cup Second Round tie.
1973 – We lost 1-0 at Coventry City.

1971 – We beat Leicester City 3-2 in L4 with Steve Heighway, Kevin Keegan and John Toshack all on target.
1957 – Huddersfield Town held us to a 1-1 draw in a Second Division match at Anfield. Les Massie bagged the first of his four goals against the reds before Alan A’Court equalised.

Moving on
2014 – Left-back Jack Robinson was sold to Queens Park Rangers after eleven senior games since making his bow as the reds’ then youngest ever player in May 2010, moving on the same day on loan to Huddersfield Town.
2020 – Ovie Ejaria was sold to Reading after two successful loan spells. On the same day, keeper Shamal George signed for Colchester United having been released by the reds.
2022 – Ex-red loanee centre-half Steven Caulker joined Fatih Karagümrük on a free transfer from Fenerbahçe Spor Kulübü, netting once in seven outings while with his fourth Turkish club.

Crossing the border
1987 - Reserves centre-forward Alan Irvine was sold to Dundee United for £100,000 after just four appearances from off the bench. He failed to score in seven League games before joining Shrewsbury Town.
1994 - Ex-red Gary Gillespie rejoined Coventry City from Celtic on a free transfer. He could only make four appearances in his second, three-season spell at Highfield Road.

Danny on target
2007 – Future reds centre-back Danny Wilson captained and scored for Scotland Under-17's for the only time, while winning the first of his four caps at this level in their 3-1 tournament defeat by Austria in Villach.

In trouble
2019 - Dean Saunders was jailed for ten weeks for refusing to provide a roadside breath test, although he was freed after one day pending an appeal, which he later won.

Also in international action
1991 – Future red Øyvind Leonhardsen played for Norway as they lost a European Championships qualifier 1-0 to the USSR in Oslo.
2015 – Ex-Academy Manager Steve Cooper took charge of England Under-17’s as they beat Turkey 2-1 in Walsall.