Graeme Souness

Graeme Souness ( born May 6, 1953 in Edinburgh ) is a former Scottish football player and current football coach. He was team captain of Liverpool FC, who played in his time a very successful era and to which he later returned as a coach.

Career as a football player

As one of the most outstanding players of his generation Souness won in seven eventful seasons at Anfield five British Championships in the then First Division ( played under this name 1889-1992 ), triple the European Champions Cup and four League Cups.

His career began Souness at the Tottenham Hotspur under the direction of Bill Nicholson. From a young age his impatience grew in the face of his only rare opportunities to recommend in the first team until he made Nicholson clear that he considered himself to be the best player in the club and therefore belong in the starting lineup.

Souness had played before his move to Middlesbrough in 1973, only once, before he became a highly respected and feared among the opponents midfield and during his five-year commitment has matured into a leading player. In 1974 he made his debut for the Scottish national football team and defeated the team of the GDR 3-0.

After winning the first national champion Cup in 1977 Liverpool was looking hard for gains to be prepared for the national and international title defense. Among the three Scottish signings, even Souness, who was signed by manager Bob Paisley in January 1978 for 350,000 British pounds was by Alan Hansen and Kenny Dalglish then. These three players should make in the subsequent period the backbone of the coming years in Liverpool.

Souness got used to fast in Liverpool and the team once again won the European national champion. However, he came up to the semi-finals is not used, but was heavily involved in the final at Wembley Stadium against FC Bruges at only goal of the game, as he feared the preparatory work for the decisive goal from Dalglish.

That same summer he was appointed by Ally McLeod for the Scotland squad the 1978 World Cup in Argentina. At that time he had completed only six caps and an injury prevented its use in the first two group games against Peru and Iran. After a defeat and a draw in these games its use in the decisive final group match against the Netherlands was considered indispensable. The necessary victory with three goals difference, but narrowly missed 3-2.

The following year, Souness won his first British championship with Liverpool and defended that title immediately in 1980 as Liverpool in 1981 lost the championship to Aston Villa, the team won the League Cup and in the final against Real Madrid already the third national champion trophy.; Souness succeeded in doing in the quarter-final against CSKA Sofia a hat-trick.

Paisley decided in the summer of 1981 to transmit the position of team captain Phil Thompson on Souness, who justified this measure by winning the British Championship and the League Cup. Souness took part in the 1982 World Cup in Spain and played in all three group matches - against New Zealand, Brazil and the USSR. He scored his first international goal in the game against the USSR, but this did not prevent that Scotland was eliminated in the preliminary round of the tournament.

Also in 1982, Souness had a cameo appearance in a film by the BBC, Boys From The Black Stuff, where he played himself.

In the subsequent year, Liverpool again won both the English championship and the League Cup. After winning the League Cup Souness waived his right to receive the trophy as captain and let his coach Paisley after his last game as head precedence.

1984 Souness won three more titles with the new championship and the League Cup in the final against city rivals from Merseyside, Everton. After a goalless first match, Souness achieved in the new edition by a skilful distance shot the decisive blow to 1:0. The European Champions Cup was ensured by a final victory on penalties against AS Roma. Shortly thereafter moved Souness, who had often expressed his desire for a foreign commitment, for a transfer fee of 650,000 pounds to Sampdoria. His playing career in Liverpool so ended after 358 missions and 56 goals.

Souness was in Italy two years, taking his international career at this time was nearing its end. The then Scottish interim manager Alex Ferguson nominated Souness for the cadres of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico and Souness completed two group games against Denmark and Germany, both of which Scotland lost and thus again retired prematurely. In the match against Uruguay, a team that kicked the ball and opponents alike, Souness had to fit an injury.

Souness scored the only goal in a legendary game preparation for this World Cup against England - after only two other internationals had ended his international career with a total of 54 missions and four goals in almost twelve years.

Coaching career

Souness moved in April 1986 to the Glasgow Rangers as player-coach. His occasional rude pick up at the tackle, the paisley in his Liverpudlian time usually had under control, there was a problem. In his first game for the Rangers he was expelled after two hard fouls on the field, and cashed in this past season as a player a handful more red cards.

Formative for the rest of the Rangers was the philosophy of Souness, more recently, also to gain foreign players for the club. He undertook some English players with the goal that a team that wants to reach higher goals, even qualitiv good player needs beyond nationality. Scottish players had already played previously often south of the border, but English players in Scotland were a rarity before Souness had the sporty responsibility for the Rangers.

Souness bought the defender Terry Butcher of Ipswich Town and made him the team captain, also the Goalkeeper Chris Woods and other English footballer. His most controversial famous shopping was, nevertheless, a Scot - Mo Johnston was a skilled and recognized striker, but also a Catholic. Johnston was also a supporter and former player of the Celtics, who traditionally derived from the Catholic environment city rivals. Despite bekundeter open hostilities Celtics supporters Johnston succeeded this conversion and he scored a number of goals for his new club.

The Rangers won two championships under Souness the Scottish Premier League and four Scottish League Cups before he returned in 1990 to Liverpool and the previously retired Dalglish inherited as a manager.

His four years there were eventful for Souness. In addition to some successes, such as the victory in the FA Cup final in 1992 against Sunderland, he had to put tactics and transfer policy and personal crises are also some criticism for decisions in the fields.

Souness had to undergo heart surgery in 1992, but sat only a few days after his release from the hospital during the FA Cup Finals on the bench. Nevertheless, the discrepancies had already started in the semi-final against Portsmouth.

The game itself had to be repeated after a draw in the first encounter and ended with Liverpool's victory on penalties. An interview with Souness, in which he celebrated both the finals and its successful operation should be published the next day in a newspaper. The image should be published with the article showed a cheerful Souness, who kissed his girlfriend and his successes celebrated.

The interview was for publication April 14, 1992, together with the post-match analysis planned, but due to the late game decision, the deadline was missed, so that the article was printed together with the photo instead on April 15 - the third anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster. The Liverpool reacted angrily when she skipped her manager to this day of remembrance of the 96 victims Celebrating saw. They were also angry about the fact that the interview in the newspaper The Sun appeared - a tabloid, which was given the negative reporting boycotted after the disaster of the fans ever since. Souness apologized several times and said later that he should have resigned at that time.

He convalesced completely from his heart surgery and remained until 1994 in Liverpool. After a defeat in the FA Cup against Bristol City, he was then replaced by Roy Evans. He moved to Turkey for Galatasaray and fell again in a controversial situation when he placed a Galatasaray flag after winning the Turkish Cup against Fenerbahce in the midst of the final pitch of the Fenerbahçe Stadium and thus provoked the opposing fans open. Is worth mentioning that he enjoys a heroic status in the Galatasaray fans since this action.

Souness returned to England to take care of Southampton. After differences with the local chairman Rupert Lowe gave this office but on again. He went to Italy to Torino Calcio, however, where he stayed only four months. His next brief interlude was the club Benfica Lisbon in Portugal.

He then returned to England. With Blackburn Rovers he succeeded in his first season promotion to the Premier League, and 2002, winning the League Cup. Souness left Blackburn in 2004 to heueren at Newcastle United, where he was employed until his dismissal in February 2006 as a coach. In addition, he is often asked as an expert in the media ( Sky Sports ).

Souness wrote an autobiography in 1985 entitled " No Half Measures". Followed in 1999 with " Souness: The Management Years" another book, in which he focuses on up to and including illuminated his coaching career at his time in Southampton.

Souness has a daughter.

Club stations than professional football

• Tottenham Hotspur (1968 - 1972)
• Middlesbrough FC (1972 - 1978)
• Liverpool (1978 - 1984)
• Sampdoria Genoa (1984 - 1986)
• Glasgow Rangers (1986 - 1987 ( player-coach ) )

Coach stations

• Glasgow Rangers (1987 - 1991)
• Liverpool (1991 - 1994)
• Galatasaray Istanbul (1995 - 1996)
• Southampton FC (1996 - 1997)
• Torino Calcio (07 /1997 - 10/ 1997)
• Benfica Lisbon (1997 - 1999)
• Blackburn Rovers (2000 - 2004)
• Newcastle United (2004 - 2006)

Successes as a player

• European Cup Winners ' Cup: 1978, 1981, 1984
• English Champion: 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984
• English League Cup Winners: 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984
• Community Shield Winner: 1979, 1980, 1982
• Coppa Italia winner: 1985

Success as a coach

• FA Cup Winners: 1992
• English League Cup Winners: 2002
• Scottish champion: 1987, 1989, 1990
• Scottish Cup Winners: 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991
• Turkish Cup winner: 1996

• National football team (Scotland )
• Football coach (Scotland )
• English Champion ( football)
• Person ( Edinburgh)
• Scotsman
• UEFA Champions League winners
• Born in 1953
• Man