Billy Liddell was such a star for Liverpool that the club itself was nicknamed after him during his era.
The Scot joined the Reds in 1938 and turned professional a year later, but the onset of World War II meant he would not be able to put the shirt on competitively until January 1946.
In a sign of things to come, he marked his belated debut with a goal in an FA Cup tie at Chester, followed by two strikes on his First Division bow.
His maiden league campaign could not have gone better, Liddell providing 18 goal contributions as the championship was won by George Kay’s team.
Soon after, he supplied goals in the quarter-final and semi-final to send Liverpool to the 1950 FA Cup final, where a 2-0 defeat by Arsenal – on a day when their talisman was kicked out of the game – denied them the trophy at Wembley.
Superlative in his technical attributes, swift on his feet and an inspirational force for those around him, he also boasted a blistering finish from long range.
Typically deployed on the left wing, Liddell later switched to a more central attacking role, but featured in practically every position apart from goalkeeper in 500-plus appearances across a 14-year spell.
While footage of Liddell’s abilities is limited, those who witnessed him on the pitch speak of him in the most reverent tones, bestowing a status equal to the likes of Kenny Dalglish and Steven Gerrard.
Teammate Albert Stubbins described him as ‘invaluable to Liverpool’, saying: “He’d beat fellas with speed, direct running at the full-back so they didn’t know which way Billy would go. Would he go left or right? He was so fast, he could pick up speed quickly.
“And he was very courageous. Also, he had a deadly shot in both feet – it didn’t matter which one, Billy could hit the ball. He was a great player.”