Phil NEAL

Full back Phil Neal joined the club in November 1974 in a £66, 000 deal from Northampton Town, where had made 186 League appearances, scoring 31 goals, in seven seasons. He was one of manager Bob Paisley's first signings and one of his most inspired, going on to become one of Liverpool's longest serving and most decorated players and the winner of 50 England caps. Solid in the tackle and with great positional sense, Neal could play anywhere in the back four but spent most of his Anfield career at right back, a position he held for over a decade. He was also an adventurous full back, overlapping to good effect and scoring an impressive amount of goals, mostly from the penalty spot.

Phil made his Liverpool debut in a 0-0 League draw at Everton on November 14, 1974, playing at left back with Tommy Smith at right back. He missed the next three games as regular left back Alec Lindsay returned to the side, but then won his place back and played the last 22 League games of the season, mostly at left back but also a few on the right. Liverpool ended the 1974-75 season without a trophy (the nearest they came was in the League, where they finished runners-up to Derby County by 2 points) but Neal had established himself in the side, embarking on an amazing run of 417 consecutive appearances in all competitions (not surprisingly a club record) over the next seven seasons. He scored his first goal for the club in a 6-0 hammering of Real Sociedad in a UEFA Cup 2nd round 2nd leg tie at Anfield on November 4, 1975, though not surprisingly for a full back his name would not appear regularly on the scoresheet until he took over the penalty taking duties from Kevin Keegan halfway through the 1975-76 season.

He enjoyed a run of four goals in four League games in December, scoring twice from the spot in a 2-2 home draw with Arsenal and twice from open play: in a 4-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur and a 2-0 home win over Queen's Park Rangers. His next League goal, another penalty, came in a 1-0 home win against Birmingham City in March '76, the start of a run of eight wins in nine games that saw the Reds wrap up a record ninth championship title and Neal collect the first winners' medal of his Liverpool career. Playing the first half of the season at right back and the second at left back, Phil was an important figure in a defence that conceded only 31 goals in League 42 games, a lower total than any other First Division side that season. He quickly added another medal to his collection as in May 1976 Liverpool completed a 4-3 aggregate victory over FC Bruges of Belgium in the two-legged UEFA Cup final, winning a second League-UEFA Cup double in four seasons. It was also this season that Neal made his England debut, winning the first of his 50 caps in a 2-1 victory over Wales at Wrexham in March 1976. (Martin Greensill)

 Phil played a prominent role in Liverpool's bid for a unique League-FA Cup-European Cup treble in the unforgettable season of 1976-77, one in which he made 61 appearances in all competitions and scored 13 goals, including 11 penalties. Seven of these came in the League, including the first, from open play, in a 2-0 home win against Arsenal in April '77, part of an unbeaten 11-match run towards the end of the campaign that gave Liverpool back-to-back titles and saw Neal pick up his second championship medal in two seasons. He also scored two penalties in nine FA Cup ties, most crucially the opener in a semi-final replay against Everton, the Reds overcoming their city rivals 3-0 at Manchester City's Maine Road ground on April 27. However, in the Wembley final on May 21, the club's dreams of the Treble were ended by a surprise 2-1 defeat to Manchester United. That left 'only' the European Cup to play for, Phil having helped Liverpool's progress to the final by scoring twice, one goal a penalty, in a 3-1 semi-final first leg win away to FC Zurich on April 6. They went on to beat the Swiss champions 3-0 in the return leg at Anfield (for a 6-1 win on aggregate) and, in their first appearance in the final of Europe's premier club competition, defeated Borussia Moenchengladbach 3-1 in Rome's Olympic Stadium on May 25. Neal played his part in a historic triumph by keeping his nerve to score a late penalty, making the game safe after a Tommy Smith header had put the Reds 2-1 up. Phil played all 61 games that season at right back and would be a permanent fixture in his favoured position for the next decade.

Appearing again in all 42 League games in season 1977-78, Phil scored four goals, all penalties, including two that gave Liverpool home wins in December 1977, as both Queen's Park Rangers and Wolverhampton Wanderers were beaten 1-0. The Reds began 1978 in third place in the table and, despite ending the season with an unbeaten run of 12 League games, were unable to complete a hat-trick of League titles, finishing runners-up to the surprise champions Nottingham Forest. Neal made 20 appearances in other competitions, including nine in the League Cup, scoring once, but again Forest denied Liverpool, beating them 1-0 in the replayed final at Old Trafford on March 22nd. He also made seven appearances in the European Cup, finding the net twice, including a goal from open play, in a 4-1 home win against Benfica in a quarter-final second leg tie in March 1978, Liverpool easing through 6-2 on aggregate after a 2-1 win in the first leg in Portugal. The Reds progressed to the final at Wembley on May 10th, Phil helping the side keep a clean sheet as they beat old rivals FC Bruges 1-0 to retain the trophy, Kenny Dalglish's clever chip proving decisive. After a season in which he had made a total of 62 appearances, scoring a useful seven goals, Neal picked up the fifth medal of his Anfield career. (Martin Greensill)

Phil played a prominent role as Liverpool sought to regain the League title in the 1978-79 campaign. His penalty in a 7-0 pasting of Tottenham at Anfield in September was part of a superb start to the season that saw the Reds win 10 and draw one of their first eleven League games, conceding only four goals. This fine run of form gave them a healthy lead in the race for the championship and they never eased up, heading the table throughout the season and claiming a record 11th title with a top flight record of 68 points (under the two points for a win system). Neal was part of a rock-solid defence that set another record, remarkably conceding just 16 goals in 42 League games, an all-time low for all four divisions of the Football League. Ever present in the League, he scored five goals, including a brace from open play in a 2-0 win against Southampton at Anfield in May '79. Those were his only goals of the season as Liverpool failed to reach the final of any of the three knockout competitions they contested, taking early exits from the European and League Cups and losing in the semi-finals of the FA Cup (1-0 to Manchester United in a replay). Phil made a total of 60 appearances in the following campaign (he is pictured above (wisely 'covering up' !) in a defensive wall with messrs Kennedy, Souness and Dalglish during a 4-0 stroll at Manchester City on 27th October), scoring just one goal, the winner, from the penalty spot, in a 2-1 League victory at Everton in March 1980. By now he was sharing the penalty kick duties with Terry McDermott, so it was no surprise that he should score fewer goals than before. Overall, Liverpool had few problems finding the net, hitting a total of 81 goals in 42 League matches as they retained the title, giving Neal his fourth League championship medal in five seasons. Defensively, the team did not scale the dizzy heights of the previous term, but their total of 30 goals conceded was still the lowest in the division. However, the League title would be Liverpool's only trophy that season. They took an early exit from the European Cup (beaten 4-2 on aggregate in the first round by Soviet side Dynamo Tbilisi) and lost in the semi-finals of both domestic knockout competitions, to Arsenal in the FA Cup and Nottingham Forest in the League Cup. (Martin Greensill)

A model of consistency, Phil Neal continued to play well throughout the 1980-81 term, a marathon season which saw him start all of Liverpool's 63 games. He scored twice in the League, both goals from open play: in a surprise 4-1 defeat at Wolves in November and in a 2-2 home draw with Birmingham City in February. However, injuries to defenders Alan Kennedy and Phil Thompson and a lack of goals from the strikers (midfielder McDermott top scored in the League with 13 goals) put paid to any hopes of a hat-trick of League titles, the Reds ending up in a disappointing 5th spot, nine points behind champions Aston Villa. Neal made 21 appearances in other competitions, scoring once, again from open play, in a European Cup 2nd round 2nd leg tie at home to Aberdeen in November, Liverpool brushing the aside the Scottish champions (then managed by Alex Ferguson) 4-0 to complete a 5-0 aggregate win. The Reds progressed to the final and a 1-0 victory over Real Madrid in Paris on May 27, left back Alan Kennedy scoring the only goal of the game, gave them a third triumph in Europe's premier club competition. That made it two trophies for the season as they had already overcome West Ham United to lift the League Cup for the first time in their history, beating the London side 2-1 in the replayed final at Villa Park on April 1st.

Liverpool made a slow start to the 1981-82 season, winning only three of their first 11 League games, and ended the year in mid-table following a 3-1 home defeat by Manchester City on Boxing Day. Phil scored just the one goal in this period, a penalty in a 1-1 home draw with Middlesbrough in September. However, the new year brought a change of fortune, the Reds winning 20 and drawing three of their last 25 games of the season to wrap up a record 13th League title. Phil scored his only other goal of the League campaign during this golden spell, netting from the penalty spot in a 5-0 drubbing of Manchester City at Anfield in April. The League championship would again be Liverpool's second trophy of the season, the Reds having retained the League Cup with a 3-1 victory over Tottenham in extra-time at Wembley on March 13th. Phil picked up two more medals after a season in which he had made 62 appearances, scoring three goals, and been part of a defence that had conceded only 32 goals in 42 League games. (Martin Greensill)

 Liverpool started the 1982-83 season brightly, going unbeaten in their first seven League games, Neal scoring from the spot in a 2-0 home win over West Bromwich Albion in August and from open play in another 2-0 home win, against Arsenal, the following month. With McDermott now out of favour (he would leave the club in September), Phil was once again in sole charge of penalty taking duties, and he showed his proficiency with a brace in a 3-0 home win against Watford in December, a victory that kept Liverpool at the top of the table. The other scorer in that game was Ian Rush, and his prolific partnership with Kenny Dalglish (they hit 24 and 18 League goals, respectively) was one reason why Liverpool retained their title easily. Phil chipped in with eight League goals, half from open play, including the only goal in a 1-0 home win against Birmingham City in January. He also scored once in the League Cup, a penalty in a 3-0 home win against Burnley in the first leg of the semi-final, Liverpool going on to win the trophy for the third season in a row, beating Manchester United 2-1 in the final at Wembley on March 26th. They failed to progress beyond the quarter-finals of either the European Cup or the FA Cup but having collected two trophies for the third consecutive season, it had been yet another successful campaign.

Phil Neal was now 32 but he was playing as well as ever and would feature prominently in the memorable 1983-84 campaign, making 64 appearances and scoring three goals. Going for a hat-trick of League titles, the Reds won only two of their first seven games but took over at the top of the table in early November and held their lead until the end of the season, becoming the first side to win three successive Division One championships since Arsenal in 1933-35. Phil scored just one League goal, the winner (from open play), in a 2-1 home victory over Arsenal in February '84. He also scored once from the spot in the Milk Cup (the successor to the League Cup), in a 3-0 win against Sheffield Wednesday in a 5th round replay at Anfield in January. Liverpool went on to win the competition for the fourth season in a row with a 1-0 defeat of Everton on March 28th (in a replay at Maine Road after a goalless draw at Wembley). With two trophies in the bag, the Reds had the chance to complete a historic League-European Cup-League Cup treble, but in the final of Europe's premier competition on May 30, 1984, they faced AS Roma on, bizarrely, the Italian side's home ground, the Olympic Stadium in Rome. After only 14 minutes of play, Neal made a typically adventurous foray into the Roma penalty area and scored with a low shot (see sequence of pictures above, Phil slotting home and then wheeling away in delight) after the Italians' defence had made a hash of clearing a cross from midfielder Ronnie Whelan. Liverpool were pegged back just after half-time and, with no further scoring, the game ended 1-1 after extra-time. In the penalty shootout, Neal showed his composure to open the Reds' account after Steve Nicol had missed the first kick and they went on to win 4-2, clinching a hat-trick of trophies and winning the European Cup for the fourth time in seven seasons. (Martin Greensill)

 n 1984-85, Liverpool made a decent start to the League season with two wins and two draws, Phil netting a penalty in both a 3-3 home draw with Norwich City in August and a 2-1 win at Luton Town in September. But a run of seven games without a win followed and the Reds dropped to an unheard of 18th place in the table. Their form improved markedly in the second half of the season (including a 3-0 home win over Arsenal in February 1985 in which Neal scored the first goal, from open play) but they could only finish third in the League, 15 points adrift of champions Everton. That rounded off a disappointing domestic campaign as Liverpool had earlier been knocked out in the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing 2-1 to Manchester United in a replay at Maine Road on April 17th. A chance for redemption came on May 30th, when they faced Juventus in the European Cup final in Brussels - but it all went horribly wrong as 39 Juventus fans died before the kick-off in the Heysel Stadium Disaster. The game surprisingly went ahead, the Italians winning 1-0 in a final that had lost virtually all meaning. Phil played in a club record sixth European Cup final - he was the only survivor from the triumph in Rome eight years earlier - but that achievement was overshadowed on a tragic night.

As the 1985-86 season dawned, Neal had turned 34 and was finally facing stiff competition for the right back spot he had held for almost a decade. Ten years his junior, Scottish international Steve Nicol began the campaign in midfield but the signing of midfielder Steve McMahon led to him switching to right back at Phil's expense. Neal was dropped for the game at Everton on September 23rd, bringing an end to his extraordinary run of 417 consecutive appearances in all competitions, a club record that is highly unlikely to ever be beaten. Phil briefly won his place back but Nicol's excellent form and versatility (he could play in midfield and central defence as well as at full back) meant that he had no future at the club. His final outing was as a half-time sub (for McMahon) in a 3-0 League win at Coventry City on November 9, 1985, and the following month he accepted an offer to manage Bolton Wanderers. That decision brought the curtain down on an outstanding Anfield career, Phil having made a total of 650 appearances, scoring 59 goals, including two strikes in European Cup finals. He had served Liverpool superbly well as an extremely reliable defender (and penalty taker) and won an incredible 16 major honours in his 12 seasons at the club. (Martin Greensill)