Ian RUSH

Early in the 1989-90 season Ian was given main responsibility for scoring the team's goals when fellow striker John Aldridge was, controversially, allowed to leave the club (joining Spanish side Real Sociedad). Now linking up with two established England stars, forward Peter Beardsley and winger John Barnes (both signed in summer 1987), Rush formed a three-pronged strike force that was to prove highly effective over the next two seasons. He found the net 18 times in 36 League games, including braces in a 4-1 win at Manchester City in December and a 2-2 draw at Nottingham Forest in January, though Barnes, with 22 (including five penalties), ended up as the side's top goalscorer in the League.

With Beardsley adding another 10, Liverpool coasted to a record 18th title, finishing nine points ahead of runners-up Aston Villa. Rushie also hit eight goals from 13 games in other competitions, including six in the FA Cup. However, his opener in the FA Cup semi-final proved insufficient as Liverpool were surprisingly beaten by Crystal Palace (4-3 after extra-time) in April 1990. Ian scored 16 goals from 37 games in the 1990-91 season as the Reds sought to retain their League title, including two braces in the space of eight days in November: in a 3-1 win away to Tottenham Hotspur and a 4-0 home win against Luton Town.

He ended as joint top scorer with John Barnes (whose tally of 16 included one penalty) but Liverpool found Arsenal too strong in the title run-in and they had to settle for the runners-up spot. Despite Ian scoring 11 goals in other competitions (from just 12 games), Liverpool could find no consolation for their League disappointment, failing to reach the quarter-finals of either the FA Cup or the League Cup. Ian was troubled with a series of injuries in the 1991-92 season and only made 18 League appearances, scoring four goals including the opener in a 2-0 home win against Manchester United in April 1992, the Reds dealing a fatal blow to their arch rivals' hopes of winning the title.

Liverpool themselves could only manage 6th spot (their lowest placing since 1962-63 when they finished eighth) as a side in transition struggled to find form under new boss Graeme Souness (Kenny Dalglish having resigned in April 1991). In other competitions, Rushie found the net five times in 13 games, most importantly the opener in the FA Cup final at Wembley as Liverpool ran out comfortable 2-0 winners against Second Division Sunderland on May 9th. Ian's right-foot shot from just inside the penalty area took his tally in Wembley FA Cup finals to five, setting a record that still stands today (2007). He also netted in a 2-1 home defeat by Italian side Genoa in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup in March 1992, Liverpool losing the tie 4-1 on aggregate as they returned to European football after serving a six-year ban for their fans' role in the Heysel Disaster. (Martin Greensill)

 Ian Rush's first League goal of the 1992-93 campaign (the inaugural season of the Premier League) did not come until October 18th, but it proved a historic one as he scored his 287th goal for Liverpool in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford, surpassing Roger Hunt's previous club record of 286. Ian would again be troubled with injuries but, despite only managing 32 League appearances, he ended as the club's top scorer with 14 goals. However, it was another disappointing League campaign, Liverpool finishing 6th again and, this time, finding no consolation in any of the knockout competitions.

Ian hit eight goals in 10 games in these, including four against Cypriot minnows Apollon Limassol in a European Cup Winners' Cup 1st round 1st leg tie at Anfield in September, but the Reds were knocked out in the next round (6-2 on aggregate by Spartak Moscow) and failed to progress beyond the 4th round of either the FA Cup or the League Cup. Summer 1993 saw Rush appointed club captain (succeeding Mark Wright) and this seemed to have a positive effect as Liverpool began the 1993-94 season with four wins in their first five League games. Rushie netted twice in this period, making a piece of history when scoring his 300th goal for the club in a 2-0 League win at Anfield against Leeds United on August 28th.

However, a run of four League defeats in a row followed and Liverpool ended the season in 8th spot, their worst finish in over 30 years. Ian was the club's top League goalscorer with 14 from 42 games, including a brace in a 2-1 home win against Manchester City in January. Second in the list (with 12 goals) was a teenage sensation, Robbie Fowler, who would benefit immensely from playing alongside Rush and later follow him as a goalscoring legend at Anfield. Ian scored five goals in seven games in other competitions but Liverpool were knocked out in the 4th round of the League Cup (beaten on penalties by Wimbledon) and in the 3rd round of the FA Cup, losing 1-0 at home to Division Two side Bristol City, an embarrassing defeat which led to the departure of manager Graeme Souness from the club and his replacement by Roy Evans. (Martin Greensill)

Ian Rush continued as club captain in the 1994-95 campaign, one he started in style by grabbing a brace as Liverpool handed out a 6-1 drubbing to Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on the opening day of the League season (August 20th). He bagged another double in a 3-1 home win over Southampton in April 1995 and ended the campaign with 12 goals from 42 games (Fowler topscoring with 25) as Liverpool improved to finish 4th in the table. The Reds also performed better in knockout competitions, reaching the quarter-finals of the FA Cup (where Tottenham beat them 2-1 at Anfield) and winning the League Cup.

Their 2-1 victory over Bolton Wanderers in the Wembley final on April 2nd gave Ian a record fifth winners' medal in this competition. His six goals in seven League Cup ties included a hat-trick against reigning Premier League champions Blackburn Rovers, Liverpool winning 3-1 in a 4th round tie at Ewood Park in November. Robbie Fowler was now the leading striker at the club and Rush's role as his partner came under threat following the arrival at Anfield of Stan Collymore, a club record, and indeed Premiership record, £8.5m signing from Nottingham Forest in July 1995. Ian scored only three goals in his first 10 League appearances of the season, including a brace in a 6-0 thrashing of Manchester City in October, and lost his place the following month. Collymore took over his No 9 shirt and went on to form a prolific partnership with Fowler, the pair contributing 42 League goals that season.

Rush made nine substitute appearances (scoring one goal) but did not start again in the League until the final game of the season, a 2-2 draw at Manchester City on May 5th in which he scored the Reds' second goal. The draw condemned City to relegation and meant Liverpool finished 3rd in the table, their best placing in five seasons. Ian ended his Anfield career with a late substitute appearance (replacing Collymore) in the FA Cup final at Wembley, Liverpool losing 1-0 to Manchester United on May 11th. As a reward for his great service to the club, he was granted a free transfer in May 1996 and moved to Leeds United later that month. An outstanding career with the Reds was over. In 15 glorious seasons at the club, Rush had collected 14 major honours, including five League championship medals and one European Cup gong (1984), and established himself as Liverpool's all-time leading goalscorer.

He was a crucial figure in the side for a decade and a half, his goals and all-round play making a major contribution to a golden era in Anfield history. In total, he scored 346 goals (including just three penalties) in 660 games in all competitions (229 in 469 League games), setting a club record that is unlikely to be beaten for a very long time, if ever. Given his remarkable achievements, it is no surprise to see him at No 3 in the list of '100 Players that shook the Kop', a poll of 110, 000 Liverpool fans conducted in 2006. (Martin Greensill)