Gerard Houllier was back in familiar territory this week – entranced by a swaying Kop and quietly mouthing the words to You’ll Never Walk Alone.
But rather than being flanked by an assistant in the dug-out, he was sitting in the directors’ box next to the man who had saved his life.
It is eight years this month since Houllier retired to the Liverpool dressing room at half-time with his team losing 1-0 to Leeds. While his players re-emerged and fought back to earn a point, their manager was being rushed to Broadgreen Hospital, immersed in his own fight.
Houllier was diagnosed as having suffered a dissection of the aorta and it is down to the skill of heart surgeon Abbas Rashid that he was posing for pictures and signing autographs at Anfield on Tuesday night.
When the draw for the Champions League paired Lyon, the last club Houllier managed, with Liverpool, he instantly knew he would have to be there. And also just who he wanted next to him.
“I was really pleased that the people in charge of the tickets understood the importance of Abbas being with me,” said Houllier.
“It was something special for me to have him there. We have become good friends. I go back to the hospital in Liverpool each year for tests and he said I looked well. I feel good. We had a little celebration together.”
Elsewhere, the mood was rather more downbeat. The last-gasp defeat by Lyon was Liverpool’s fourth in succession and has only served to increase the pressure on Rafa Benitez.
There appear parallels between his tenure and Houllier’s reign. After finishing second in 2002 Liverpool were unable to push on, taking a backwards step the following season under Houllier’s command which sowed the seeds for Benitez to succeed him.
The bid to kick on from being runners-up last season is proving similarly fraught. Should Liverpool lose to Manchester United on Sunday, it would be their worst run since September 1953 – the season they last tumbled out of the top flight.
Houllier is philosophical about his time at the helm, while confident Benitez will arrest the current malaise.
“I should have taken one year off after my illness,” he said. “I came back after five months and it was probably too soon because it was difficult for me. I was tired.
“The sabbatical I had after leaving Liverpool helped me. I did only TV work in France for a year and then went to Lyon and won two championships.
“But I am proud of my time at Liverpool. The reaction of the fans was special for me the other night. I was extremely moved. I always tried to do my best for them and I think they realised this. I saw Rafa before and after the game. We don’t know each other that well, but we respect one another. He seemed okay. He wasn’t too down. He understands the situation.
“It will come good. Why? Because it is a big club, a big team and a good staff. I am sure of that.
“Liverpool are depleted by injuries at the moment. I see their games regularly on French television and it was not the same team against Lyon, but a draw would have been a fair result.
“In the big games you need your big players. Liverpool didn’t have Steven [Gerrard], Torres and Johnson.
“The team is going through a bad patch. It happens and you are only one game away from a crisis in football today.
“It happens to all the clubs. It will be another team soon because when the injured players are back they will start winning again.”
There would be no better time than tomorrow to stop the rot. Houllier will be back at Anfield, in mind if not body, for a fixture that holds heady personal memories.
Liverpool achieved the league double over their bitter rivals in two successive seasons and the League Cup final win over Ferguson’s side at the Millennium Stadium in 2003 was the last of Houllier’s six trophies.
“For the fans you have to beat United and Everton and to win these games you need a strong solidarity, cohesion, hard work and humility,” said Houllier, who is now back working with the French Football Federation.
“But luck plays a part in it as well. We did well against United. Danny Murphy used to score every season! But I remember the defeats really because they are more difficult to take. You go away analysing what went wrong, trying to understand what happened.
“I can remember losing 2-1 to United at Anfield. And also 4-0 at Old Trafford, when Sami Hyypia was sent off after something like four minutes.”
Central to the drama on Sunday will be two of Houllier’s former pupils. Michael Owen’s controversial return to the ground where he made his name is a tasty undercard to the main event, while Jamie Carragher will be desperate to ensure his former room-mate leaves empty handed.
“Jamie is the heart of the team. I am very proud of what he has done,” said Houllier. “I know he has been criticised this season, but he was good against Lyon. Shouting, organising.
“Steven is a captain in terms of leadership, but Jamie is a captain of competitiveness. He gives the emotion to a game. You saw that in Istanbul in 2005 when even with leg cramps he was still outstanding. He epitomises the spirit of Liverpool.”
And Owen? Did Houllier ever think he would see him in a United strip?
“I am pleased for Michael,” he added. “As long as Liverpool didn’t want him, it is good for him to be at a big club like United.
“He has an enthusiasm for football and, of course, a great goalscoring record.”
It is an indication of just how Liverpool remains ingrained in his soul, however, that the thought of Owen wheeling away in celebration would send a shiver down Houllier’s spine.‘I’m fine now – my doctor says I look well’
But rather than being flanked by an assistant in the dug-out, he was sitting in the directors’ box next to the man who had saved his life.
It is eight years this month since Houllier retired to the Liverpool dressing room at half-time with his team losing 1-0 to Leeds. While his players re-emerged and fought back to earn a point, their manager was being rushed to Broadgreen Hospital, immersed in his own fight.
Houllier was diagnosed as having suffered a dissection of the aorta and it is down to the skill of heart surgeon Abbas Rashid that he was posing for pictures and signing autographs at Anfield on Tuesday night.
When the draw for the Champions League paired Lyon, the last club Houllier managed, with Liverpool, he instantly knew he would have to be there. And also just who he wanted next to him.
“I was really pleased that the people in charge of the tickets understood the importance of Abbas being with me,” said Houllier.
“It was something special for me to have him there. We have become good friends. I go back to the hospital in Liverpool each year for tests and he said I looked well. I feel good. We had a little celebration together.”
Elsewhere, the mood was rather more downbeat. The last-gasp defeat by Lyon was Liverpool’s fourth in succession and has only served to increase the pressure on Rafa Benitez.
There appear parallels between his tenure and Houllier’s reign. After finishing second in 2002 Liverpool were unable to push on, taking a backwards step the following season under Houllier’s command which sowed the seeds for Benitez to succeed him.
The bid to kick on from being runners-up last season is proving similarly fraught. Should Liverpool lose to Manchester United on Sunday, it would be their worst run since September 1953 – the season they last tumbled out of the top flight.
Houllier is philosophical about his time at the helm, while confident Benitez will arrest the current malaise.
“I should have taken one year off after my illness,” he said. “I came back after five months and it was probably too soon because it was difficult for me. I was tired.
“The sabbatical I had after leaving Liverpool helped me. I did only TV work in France for a year and then went to Lyon and won two championships.
“But I am proud of my time at Liverpool. The reaction of the fans was special for me the other night. I was extremely moved. I always tried to do my best for them and I think they realised this. I saw Rafa before and after the game. We don’t know each other that well, but we respect one another. He seemed okay. He wasn’t too down. He understands the situation.
“It will come good. Why? Because it is a big club, a big team and a good staff. I am sure of that.
“Liverpool are depleted by injuries at the moment. I see their games regularly on French television and it was not the same team against Lyon, but a draw would have been a fair result.
“In the big games you need your big players. Liverpool didn’t have Steven [Gerrard], Torres and Johnson.
“The team is going through a bad patch. It happens and you are only one game away from a crisis in football today.
“It happens to all the clubs. It will be another team soon because when the injured players are back they will start winning again.”
There would be no better time than tomorrow to stop the rot. Houllier will be back at Anfield, in mind if not body, for a fixture that holds heady personal memories.
Liverpool achieved the league double over their bitter rivals in two successive seasons and the League Cup final win over Ferguson’s side at the Millennium Stadium in 2003 was the last of Houllier’s six trophies.
“For the fans you have to beat United and Everton and to win these games you need a strong solidarity, cohesion, hard work and humility,” said Houllier, who is now back working with the French Football Federation.
“But luck plays a part in it as well. We did well against United. Danny Murphy used to score every season! But I remember the defeats really because they are more difficult to take. You go away analysing what went wrong, trying to understand what happened.
“I can remember losing 2-1 to United at Anfield. And also 4-0 at Old Trafford, when Sami Hyypia was sent off after something like four minutes.”
Central to the drama on Sunday will be two of Houllier’s former pupils. Michael Owen’s controversial return to the ground where he made his name is a tasty undercard to the main event, while Jamie Carragher will be desperate to ensure his former room-mate leaves empty handed.
“Jamie is the heart of the team. I am very proud of what he has done,” said Houllier. “I know he has been criticised this season, but he was good against Lyon. Shouting, organising.
“Steven is a captain in terms of leadership, but Jamie is a captain of competitiveness. He gives the emotion to a game. You saw that in Istanbul in 2005 when even with leg cramps he was still outstanding. He epitomises the spirit of Liverpool.”
And Owen? Did Houllier ever think he would see him in a United strip?
“I am pleased for Michael,” he added. “As long as Liverpool didn’t want him, it is good for him to be at a big club like United.
“He has an enthusiasm for football and, of course, a great goalscoring record.”
It is an indication of just how Liverpool remains ingrained in his soul, however, that the thought of Owen wheeling away in celebration would send a shiver down Houllier’s spine.‘I’m fine now – my doctor says I look well’
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