SORRY MESS Red-faced Liverpool apologise over pursuit of Van Dijk and claim they will no longer buy Saints star
But it haunts me to this day says Terry McDermott
LIVERPOOL have ditched their dogged pursuit of £60million Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk after being forced into a humiliating apology.
The Reds had to say sorry to the south-coast club after being reported to the FA over an alleged illegal approach for the Dutchman.
A club statement said: “We apologise to Southampton for any misunderstanding regarding Virgil van Dijk. We can confirm we have ended any interest in the player.”
Liverpool had not even made an official bid for the 25-year-old before
BY common consent, it was the greatest match of the Premier League era – and arguably the most pivotal in any title race.
But it finished with Kevin Keegan tempted to knock out former Liverpool team-mate Sammy Lee for celebrating the dramatic winner over-exuberantly right under his nose.
And, 21 years on, the heartbreak of missing out on the crown is still as raw for Keegan’s assistant Terry McDermott as it was in April 1996.
Such was Newcastle United’s desperation to land their first title in almost 70 years that, at one stage, manager Keegan feared the club was cursed after supporters warned him that the city’s Gallowgate area, where St James’ Park rises like a citadel above the Tyne, was once the site for hanging witches.
The Geordies had seen a 12point lead at the top evaporate, but their destiny was still in their own hands – three points behind leaders Manchester United with two games in hand – when they went to Anfield.
Liverpool were not out of the race themselves, and Robbie Fowler fired them in front in only the second minute on a thunderous night when the Shankly Gates rattled on their hinges from the din.
But goals from Les Ferdinand and David Ginola put Newcastle 2-1 up inside a quarter of an hour as Keegan’s cavaliers produced an exhilarating response. And they led 3-2, with 22 minutes remaining, after Faustino Asprilla’s exquisite finish – but two Stan Collymore goals, the winner coming in the second minute of added time, drained the Toon’s swagger like pulling the plug out of the bath. As the title slipped away, Keegan later went into a memorable meltdown on live TV with a rant at United manager Sir Alex Ferguson. But Keegan had a volatile temper going back to his exchange of punches with Leeds skipper Billy Bremner in the Charity Shield 22 years earlier, and in his autobiography Terry Mac, published earlier this year, McDermott revealed the Newcastle boss almost suffered a short circuit that night at Anfield. McDermott said: “It was heartbreaking and the years haven’t softened the hurt. It affects me today just as much as it did 20 years ago. At the final whistle I shook hands with Liverpool manager Roy Evans but really I just wanted to get away from it all as quickly as I could. I wanted the ground to open up so I could disappear down a hole. Kevin, meanwhile, admitted he had come close to punching Sammy Lee’s lights out.
“Sammy, who we both knew well, was one of the Liverpool coaches and he went berserk after Stan Collymore’s late winning goal.
“While we’re both hanging over the advertising hoarding, he’s doing a jig right in front of our dugout. He was beside himself, jumping up and down, which he often does, but where he did it was completely out of order.
“If he had got any closer, Kevin would have knocked him out. Sammy is a smashing bloke but you don’t do that. He was dancing in front of all of our staff. To be fair, he rang Kevin the next day and apologised.”
McDermott is convinced Newcastle would have gone on to win the title if they had won at Anfield, but he praised United’s relentless pursuit of the prize, admitting: “They kept doing what was needed – they kept winning games 1-0, usually in the 92nd minute, and they kept getting the three points.”
For the sake of balance, it is worth noting that, despite the phenomenon known as Fergie Time, United’s only lastminute goal in the Premier League that season was Eric Cantona’s equaliser in the 1-1 draw at QPR.
Newcastle fell short by four points and they have since been relegated twice from the Premier League, returning as champions of the Football League 12 months later each time.