Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images
Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images
Manchester City and Liverpool have been going head-to-head on and off the pitch over the past decade after City’s rise to the top of English and European football.
With the Manchester club now facing huge sanctions for unprecedented breaking of financial rules, there is a feeling that they have robbed the Reds of a haul of trophies they almost certainly would have won under Jurgen Klopp.
While anger over that reality will only fester and grow amongst Liverpool fans, they can at least look back and know that they scored one very big victory over City, when all-time top goalscorer Ian Rush rejected them in favour of the Reds in 1980. As Rush has revealed 46 years later, he had the choice between the two clubs when leaving Chester, but ultimately opted for Liverpool.
Liverpool four-grid
Ian Rush rejected Man City for Liverpool
Although City’s most successful period has obviously come since their state-backed takeover in 2008, before which they were regularly between divisions, they do have a history of being a top tier team long before then.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s they were a middling First Division side, and, as Rush told Liverpoolfc.com on Friday, they were doing well enough to put down an offer of £500,000 to sign him from Chester City.
“I signed for Liverpool because of Chester manager Alan Oakes. It’s as simple as that,” said the 64-year-old, recalling how he ended up with the Reds.
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“He knew how I played and I think when Liverpool came in, they offered £300,000 for me. Manchester City were also interested, and they actually put in a bid of £500,000. Alan used to play for them as well so you’d think he’d be more inclined to have pushed me there – but he told me to go to Liverpool because he thought it would suit me better in the long term. You do think, it can’t have been easy for him at the time to do that with the money involved in the transfer.
“But at City a lot of players were being thrown into the first team straight away, whereas at Liverpool you’d get that time to adjust, adapt and learn,” Rush added.
“I have a lot to thank him for because that advice allowed me to develop my trade being a striker and a goalscorer – and look now at how my career finished up.”
Oakes actually remains City’s all-time appearance holder, racking up a whopping 680 matches for them between 1959 and 1976, winning the league championship in 1968 and the FA Cup one year later.
But, despite his strong affiliation with City, Oakes looked at what was best for Rush. The rest, as they say, is very much history.
Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images
Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images
Liverpool DP
Liverpool DP
Photo by ANP via Getty Images
Photo by ANP via Getty Images