This is the 236thepisode
of my podcast, 'Soccernostalgia Talk
Podcast’.
For this episode, I interview English Author and Professor of History, Dr. Alan McDougall
as we discuss his book ‘Dreams and Songs to Sing: A People’s History of
Liverpool FC from Shankly to Klopp’ (2025).
Dr. McDougall, an English Professor of
History at University of Guelph (Ontario, Canada)
His books include:
The People's Game: Football, State and
Society in East Germany (2014)
Contested Fields: A Global History of
Modern Football (2020)
Youth Politics in East Germany: The Free
German Youth Movement 1946-1968 (2004)
Dreams and Songs to Sing: A People's
History of Liverpool FC from Shankly to Klopp (to be released August 28, 2025)
For any questions/comments,
you may contact us:
You may also contact me on
this blog, on twitter @sp1873 and on facebook under Soccernostalgia.
The
sixth edition of the UEFA Super Cup took place in the Fall of 1978, between the
winner of the Champions Cup, Liverpool and the winners of the Cup Winners Cup,
Anderlecht.
The
English side Liverpool were the defending Super Cup Champions and had won their
second straight Champions Cup after defeating Belgian side Club Brugge (1-0) at
Wembley on May 10th, 1978.
They
were continuing a dynasty at the top level following UEFA Cup wins in 1973 and
1976 and the Champions Cup in 1977.
The
English contingent of Clemence, Neal, Smith, Thompson, Alan and Ray Kennedy,
Case, McDermott were complemented with the Scottish trio of Dalglish, Souness
and Hansen
The
Belgian side Anderlecht were also having their greatest era on the European
Stage. They had just won their second Cup Winners Cup in three years on May 3rd,
1978 at Paris by defeating Austria’s FK Austria Vienna (4-0).
The
side contained a mix of Belgian and Dutch Internationals.
The
Belgians included the likes of Ludo Coeck, Van der Elst and Vercauteren.
The
Dutch stars included Rensenbrink, Haan and Geels, to name a few,
Anderlecht
had won this trophy just two years prior by defeating the mighty Bayern Munich.
It
was hard to pick favorites between two of the greatest teams of the decade.
The
first leg was played on December 4th, 1978 at Brussels’ Emile Versé
Stadium.
For
Liverpool, their veteran Captain Emlyn Hughes was not a regular by this time.
He nevertheless started as Phil Thompson was injured.
As
the home team, Anderlecht were intent on attacking to build up a margin. They
took the lead through a header by Vercauteren in the 17th minute
after a fine cross from the right side from Resenebrink.
Just
ten minutes later, Jimmy Case leveled the score from a long-range shot.
Anderlecht
continued attacking and were rewarded in the 38th minute, when Van
der Elst struck home another cross from the right side.
With
just minutes remaining, Rensenbrink struck a decisive third goal to make the
Belgians’ cushion stronger for the second leg.
Liverpool
Manager Bob Paisley was very critical of his team's performance, he said,
“We threw it away, our attitude was wrong and we were careless. Anderlecht are
a great team going forward, but we never attacked them as we should. Our
approach seems to have gone a bit wrong and we've lost our scoring touch where
earlier in the season our finishing was great."
A
two-goal margin was not beyond Liverpool and there was a lot to play for in the
second leg despite Anderlecht’s dominance.
Photo From: Official Match
Programme, Liverpool v Anderlecht, 1978
(December 4, 1978, UEFA Super
Cup, Anderlecht 3- Liverpool 1)
Photo From: Official Match
Programme, Liverpool v Anderlecht, 1978
(December 4, 1978, UEFA Super
Cup, Anderlecht 3- Liverpool 1)
Photo From: Official Match
Programme, Liverpool v Anderlecht, 1978
(December 4, 1978, UEFA Super
Cup, Anderlecht 3- Liverpool 1)
Photo From:
France Football, Issue 1888, June 15, 1982
(Károly Palotai)
The Second Leg took place at Liverpool’s
Anfield Stadium on December 19th, 1978.
Liverpool made a few changes from the
first leg. Starting goalkeeper Ray Clemence had been injured in training. Steve
Ogrizovic would deputize for him in goal.
Phil Thompson was back in the squad with
Alan Kennedy making way. In attack, David Fairclough started ahead of David
Johnson.
Anderlecht made two changes to their own
squad.
Gilbert
van Binst and Matty van Toom started ahead of Broos and Benny Nielsen.
The conditions for this return leg were
farcical, as the pitch was frosty and a fog covered the entire ground.
The conditions forced the match to start
15 minutes late. Not that it made a difference as no one in the stands could
see the action on the field.
Liverpool
attacked from the start, as they had to make up a deficit.
They
took the lead in the 13th minute, when Emlyn Hughes knocked in a
rebound after De Bree had parried Jimmy Case’s shot.
It
was reported that after Liverpool’s goal, the fans chanted, "Oggy, Oggy (Ogrizovic)
tell us who scored", since they could not see the action on the field.
Liverpool
continued to dominate with Souness and McDermott controlling the midfield.
At
halftime, Anderlecht replaced the injured Geels with Martens.
The
Belgians started attacking after halftime and started creating chances.
They
tied the match in the 71st minute through Van der Elst. This more or
less sealed the tie as Liverpool had to score twice more in twenty minutes just
to force overtime.
Liverpool
did manage to score just before the end through Fairclough but to no avail.
Despite Liverpool’s (2-1) win. Anderlecht won the tie (4-3) on aggregate to win
their second UEFA Super Cup in three seasons.
Photo From: Official Match
Programme, Liverpool v Anderlecht, 1978
(December 19, 1978, UEFA
Super Cup, Liverpool 2-Anderlecht)
Photo From: Gazet van Antwerpen,
December 20, 1978
(December 19, 1978, UEFA Super
Cup, Liverpool 2-Anderlecht)
Photo From:
France Football, Issue 1888, June 15, 1982
(Nicolae Rainea)
Following
the match, Referee Nicolae Rainea justified his decision to play by
stating, “When I went out there before kick-off I decided I could see well
enough and so I decided to play. I am afraid many spectators would not get a
very clear view but there was no time I had any thoughts of abandoning the
game.".
In
contrast Liverpool Manager Bob Paisley was very critical of Rainea’s decision
to allow the match to go on, Paisley said, “You can't play football in
conditions like that, it's ridiculous.”
He
suggested the competition should be played in April with better weather.
He
added, "I think a match like this, between two leading team should be
played in better weather, say in April. I know it's difficult, but it's
farcical when good players like these have to slither about in fog and can't
see each other….It was farcical playing the game in such conditions. There is
no way an important game should have been played tonight….My main concern was
that somebody might get hurt. Luckily nobody did. I wanted to play this match
in April when it would have been a real decider between the winners of the two
big European Cups. Then we would have had 40,000 here and they would have seen
a good spectacle.”
Paisley’s
desire in April was wishful thinking at best as the Semifinals of the European
Cup Competitions regularly took place in that month.
The
scheduling of this competition would be a point of contention for the upcoming
decades.
December 4, 1978
Royale sporting Club
Anderlechtois(Belgium) 3-Liverpool Football Club (England) 1
UEFA
Super Cup- First Leg
Venue: Brussels- Emile Versé
Stadium
Attendance: 35,000
Referee: Karoly Palotai (Hungary)
Goalscorers:
(Anderlecht):
Franky Vercauteren 17, François Van der Elst 38. Rob Rensenbrink 87
(Liverpool): Jimmy Case 27
Summary
of goals:
1:0
(17th minute, Anderlecht): Rensenbrink’s cross from the right side was
headed in by Vercauteren.
1:1
(27th minute, Liverpool): Jimmy Case scored from a long shot from outside
the box.
2:1
(38th minute, Anderlecht): A loose ball in the air was one timed volleyed
across from the right side by Benny Nielsen, it went across the box and Van Der
Elst shot home.
3:1
(87th minute, Anderlecht): Haan sent Rensenbrink clear on the left side,
he cut in and slid past Clemence.
12-
David Johnson, 13- Ray Clemence, 14-Steve Heighway (Republic of Ireland),
15-Sammy Lee, 16-Brian Kettle
Team
Captain: Kenny Dalglish
Official
Kit Supplier/Designer: Umbro
Uniform
Colors: Red Shirts, Red Shorts, Red Socks
Note: Kenny Dalglish is named
as the Captain in many sources, however, in the video highlights of the match
Emlyn Hughes is shown with the armband after scoring.
RSC
Anderlecht:
1-Nico
de Bree (Holland), 2-Gilbert van Binst, 3-Matty van Toom (Holland), 4-Johnny
Dusbaba (Holland), 5-Jean Thissen, 6-Franky Vercauteren, 7-François Van der
Elst, 8-Ruud Geels (Holland) (12-Ronny Martens 46), 9-Arie Haan (Holland),
10-Ludo Coeck, 11-Rob Rensenbrink (Holland)
Coach:
Raymond Goethals
Booked:
Johnny Dusbaba (pulling back Souness)
Other
Substitutes:
-
Team
Captain: Rob Rensenbrink
Official
Kit Supplier/Designer: Adidas
Uniform Colors: White Shirts, White Shorts, White Socks
Liverpool Team for these matches:
Goalkeepers:
Raymond
Neal Clemence
(August 5, 1948 (age 30 years at the time), Skengress)
Steve
Ogrizovic
(September 12, 1957 (age 21 years at the
time), Mansfield, Nottinghamshire)
Defenders:
Philip George Neal(February 20, 1951, (age
27 years at the time), Irchester)
Alan
Kennedy
(August 31, 1954 (age 24 years at the time), Sunderland)
Philip
Bernard Thompson (January 21, 1954 (age 24 years at the time), Kirkby)
Emlyn
Walter Hughes
(August 28, 1947 (age 31 years at the time),Barrow-in-Furness-November
9, 2004, Sheffield)
Alan
David Hansen
(June 13, 1955 (age 23 years at the time), Sauchie)
Midfielders/Forwards:
Raymond
Kennedy (July 28, 1951 (age 27 years at the time), Seaton
Delaval)
Kenneth
Mathieson Dalglish (Scotland) (March 4, 1951 (age 27 years at the time),
Dalmarnock)
James
Robert ‘Jimmy’ Case (May 18, 1954 (age 24 years at the time), Liverpool)
Stephen
Derek ‘Steve’ Heighway (Republic of Ireland) (November 25, 1947 (age
31 years at the time), Dublin, Republic of Ireland)
David
Fairclough(January 5, 1957 (age 21 years at the time), Liverpool)
David
Edward Johnson
(October 23, 1951 (age 27 years at the
time), Liverpool)
Terence
‘Terry’ McDermott (December 8, 1951 (age 26-27 years at the time), Liverpool)
Graeme James Souness (Scotland) (May 6, 1953 (age 25 years at the time), Edinburgh, Scotland)
Samuel
‘Sammy’ Lee
(February 7, 1959 (age 19 years at the
time), Liverpool)
Brian
Kettle
(April 22, 1956 (age 22 years at the time), Prescott)
Coach:
Robert ‘Bob’ Paisley (January 23, 1919 (age 69 years at the time), Hetton-le-Hole-February
14, 1996, Liverpool)
Team Captain: Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish (Scotland)
Official
Kit Supplier/Designer: Umbro
Note:
Some
information for unused substitutes may not be available, therefore these are
the players on and off the field that are verified to have been present).
Photo
From: Panini England 78-79
(Liverpool
Logo)
Photo
Credits:
All
Liverpool players and Manager from Panini England 78-79
Except:
Sammy
Lee (Panini England 82-83)
Ogrizovic
(Panini England 84-85)
Brian
Kettle (Anfield Review)
RSC Anderlecht Team for these matches:
Goalkeepers:
Nicolaas
Alphonsus Petrus ‘Nico’ de Bree (Holland) (September 16, 1944 (age 34 years at the time), Zuilen, Holland-May 6,
2016, Vienna, Austria)
Jacques
‘Jacky’ Munaron (September 8, 1956 (age 22 years
at the time), Namur)
Defenders:
Hugo
Broos
(April 10, 1952 (age 26 years at the time), Humbeek)
Johnny
Dusbaba (Holland) (March 14, 1956 (age 22 years at
the time), The Hague, Holland)
Jean
Thissen
(April 21, 1946 (age 32 years at the time), Ensival, Verviers)
Gilbert
van Binst
(July 7, 1951 (age 27 years at the time), Machelen)
Midfielders
/ Forwards:
François
Van der Elst
(December 1, 1954 (age 24 years at the
time), Opwijk, Holland-January 11, 2017, Aalst)
François
‘Franky’ Vercauteren (October 28, 1956 (age 22 years at
the time), Sint-Jans-Molenbeek)
Jorgen
‘Benny’ Nielsen (Denmark) (March 7, 1951 (age 27 years at
the time), Frederiksvaersk, Denmark)
Geertruida
‘Ruud’ Maria Geels (Holland) (July 28, 1948 (age
30 years at the time), Haarlem, Holland)
Arend
‘Arie’ Haan (Holland) (November 16, 1948 (age 30 years
at the time), Finsterwolde, Holland)
Ludo
Coeck
(September 25, 1955 (age 23 years at the
time), Berchem-October 9, 1985, Edegem)
Pieter
Robert ‘Rob’ Rensenbrink (Holland) (July 3, 1947 (age
31 years at the time), Amsterdam, Holland)
Ronny
Martens
(December 22, 1958 (age 19 years at the
time),)
Matthijs
‘Matty’ van Toom (Holland) (December 29, 1950 (age 27 years
at the time), Rotterdam, Holland-November 21, 2007, Liege, Belgium)
Coach:
Raymnd Goethals (October 7 1921 (age 57 years at the time), Vorst-December
6, 2004, Brussels)
Team Captain: Rob Rensenbrink
Official
Kit Supplier/Designer: Adidas
Shirt
Sponsor: Belle-Vue (For these matches no shirt sponsors was used)
Note:
Some
information for unused substitutes may not be available, therefore these are
the players on and off the field that are verified to have been present).
Photo
From: anderlecht logo Panini Belgium 1978-79
(Anderlecht
logo)
Photo
Credits:
All
Anderlecht players and Manager from Panini Belgium 1978-79
References;
Daily
Telegraph, December 20, 1978
Gazet
van Antwerpen, December 20, 1978
Official
Match Programme, Liverpool v Anderlecht, 1978
The
1984 Edition of the Intercontinental Cup was the fifth in its ‘permanent’ home
in Tokyo.
The
participating teams were England’s Liverpool and Argentina’s Independiente.
Liverpool
had won the Champions Cup by defeating AS Roma (1-1, 4-2 on penalty kick
shoot-out) on May 30th, 1984 at Rome.
Independiente
had won the Copa Libertadoes in July. They had defeated the defending
Champions, Brazil’s Gremio, on July 24th,
1984 (1-0) followed by a scoreless tie away from home on July 27th,
1984.
Photo
From: Toyota Cup 1984 Programme
(Match Programme, December 9, 1984,
Intercontinental Cup, Independiente 1-Liverpool 0)
Jose
Omar Pastoriza’s Independiente were led by veterans such as skipper Enzo
Trossero, Claudio Marangoni and Ricardo Bochini.
Bochini
was the only survivor from the Independiente squad that had won the
Intercontinental Cup in 1973 (1-0 over Juventus).
Other
players included future 1986 World Cup Champions Jorge Burruchaga, Nestor
Clausen and Ricardo Giusti.
Joe
Fagan’s Liverpool were a mixture of English and British Internationals (such as
Neal, Nicol, Hansen, Rush, Dalglish) as well as the Zimbabwe goalkeeper
Grobbelaar and Danish midfielder Jan Molby.
They
had left behind Sammy Lee and Paul Walsh back in England to nurse injuries.
They
would also miss the Irish defender Mark Lawrenson, who failed a late fitness
test. Young Scottish defender Gary Gillespie would take his spot.
This
was the first time since the 1982 Falklands War that the Nations were meeting
at any level. The Organizers had taken precaution and
lodged the teams at different hotels.
It was also understood that the match Referee, the Brazilian
Romualdo Arppi Filho, had been given instructions to stamp down on any violence
so that the match would not degenerate (not only because of Falklands but
generally previous encounters between the Nations had been violent).
Photo
From: El Grafico, Ed.Esp. nº 40 Diciembre 1984
(Both
squads, December 9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup, Independiente 1-
Photo
From: Onze, Issue 109, January 1985
(both
squads, December 9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup, Independiente 1-Liverpool 0)
Photo
From: Onze, Issue 109, January 1985
(Teams
Captains Enzo Trossero and Phil Neal, December 9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup,
Independiente 1-Liverpool 0)
Independiente had arrived earlier than Liverpool in Tokyo. They
had six full days to adjust to the conditions, while Liverpool had only arrived
two days prior to the match. The Argentines had flown for 12 hours, while
Liverpool arrived after 36 hours of flight.
The Match was to be played on a hard bumpy surface; as such
neither team could play at their optimal level.
Liverpool (playing in their non-customary away yellow kit) played
with a flat back four. As in their previous encounter in 1981 (0-3 to Flamengo)
many observers questioned Liverpool’s motivation for such matches. It was
believed Liverpool had their mind mostly on their upcoming League and FA Cup
matches.
The match itself was settled early on. In the 6th
minute, Marangoni’s cross caught the Liverpool defense flat and Percudani took
advantage to go ahead and open the scoring with only Grobbelaar to beat. The
Liverpool players appealed for offside but it was to no avail.
Photo
From: EL GRAFICO, Issue 3401, December 11, 1984
Photo
From: EL GRAFICO, Issue 3401, December 11, 1984
(Independiente players celebrating the winner,
December 9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup, Independiente 1-Liverpool 0)
Liverpool pressured after goal but could not break through as Independiente defense (Villaverde and Trossero in central defense) had
Ian Rush in check throughout the match.
Steve
Nicol was Liverpool’s most active player, along with Craig Johnston, but the
breakthrough was elusive.
Photo
From: El Grafico, Ed.Esp. nº 40 Diciembre 1984
(December
9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup, Independiente 1- Liverpool 0)
Photo
From: El Grafico, Ed.Esp. nº 40 Diciembre 1984
(December
9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup, Independiente 1- Liverpool 0)
Photo
From: El Grafico, Ed.Esp. nº 40 Diciembre 1984
(December
9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup, Independiente 1- Liverpool 0)
Photo
From: El Grafico, Ed.Esp. nº 40 Diciembre 1984
(December 9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup,
Independiente 1- Liverpool 0)
Liverpool could not properly string moves and had to go the aerial
route, which the Argentines handled.
John Wark did score a goal in the 63rd minute, but it
was ruled out, as Ian Rush was offside on the play.
Photo
From: EL GRAFICO, Issue 3401, December 11, 1984
(John
Wark and Villaverde, December 9, 1984, Intercontinental Cup, Independiente
1-Liverpool 0)
Alan Kennedy had Liverpool’s last good chance in the 85th minute
but Carlos
Goyén saved.
In the end Independiente won by the slimmest of margins.
It had been a technically poor match, with the only positive
aspect being the non-violence (that had been expected).
Liverpool
ManagerJoe Fagan could not fault
the effort his players had put in; they could not find a way through
tactically. He did lament how his players did not take advantage of their
opportunities. He also stressed the better ball control of the Argentineans and
the strength of their defense.
He
believed Independiente were more successful in
adapting to the hard surface and bounces.
Photo
From: EL GRAFICO, Issue 3401, December 11, 1984
His Captain, Phil Neal believed Liverpool should have won and
claimed the goal had been offside and felt having a Brazilian referee with
linesmen from other Nations did not help communication.
Independiente Manager Pastoriza stressed that they had won because
they controlled the midfield better.
The young goalscorer, Percudani was chosen as the player of the
match and won the Toyota car.
For the fifth time in a row, Tokyo remained an elusive place to
win for the European competitors
Photo
From: EL GRAFICO, Issue 3401, December 11, 1984
Sergio
Cesar Merlini (November 13, 1962, Bell Ville,
province of Córdoba)
Coach:
Jose Omar Pastoriza (May 23, 1942, Rosario-August 2, 2004, Buenos
Aires)
Note:
Some
information for unused substitutes may not be available, therefore these are
the players on and off the field that are verified to have been present).
Photo
From: Toyota Cup 1984 Programme
(Independiente
Logo)
Photo
From: Onze, Issue 107, November 1984
(Jose
Omar Pastoriza)
Photo
From: Toyota Cup 1984 Programme
(Independiente
squad)
Photo
From: Toyota Cup 1984 Programme
(Independiente
squad)
Liverpool squad:
Goalkeepers:
Bruce
David Grobbelaar (Zimbabwe) (October 6, 1957, Durban, South Africa)
Craig
Peter Johnston (June 25, 1960, Johannesburg, South Africa)
John
Wark (August 4, 1957, Glasgow, Scotland)
Ronald
Andrew ‘Ronnie’ Whelan (September 25, 1961, Dublin, Republic of Ireland)
Kevin
Duncan McDonald (November 22, 1960, Inverness, Scotland)
Michael
John Robinson (July 12, 1958, Leicester)
Coach:
Joseph Fagan (March 12, 1921, Liverpool-June 30, 2001, Liverpool)
Note:
Some
information for unused substitutes may not be available, therefore these are
the players on and off the field that are verified to have been present).
Photo
From: Toyota Cup 1984 Programme
(Liverpool
Logo)
Photo
From: Panini 84/85 England
(Joe
Fagan)
Photo
From: Toyota Cup 1984 Programme
(Liverpool
squad)
Photo
From: Toyota Cup 1984 Programme
(Liverpool
squad)
References:
France
Football, Issue 2018, December 11, 1984
Onze,
Issue 107, November 1984
Onze,
Issue 109, January 1985
Guerin
Sportivo, Issue 522 (Number 2), January 9-15, 1985
