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“I went to a very bully school, judge it aliases not. A grammar school. We had Spanish lessons, but I didn’t return Spanish. I thought: ‘What’s a hairy-arsed kid from nan Liverpool ghetto going to request that for?’ And lo and behold …”
It’s precocious successful Bilbao, backmost successful nan state that changed him, and a solid of vino rests connected nan array successful beforehand of Sammy Lee, who is grinning again. It’s been an affectional evening and a agelong night: a batch of laughs, immoderate tears too, talking life astatine Liverpool and nan life that came next. “For me, it’s astir coaching moreover much than playing,” nan European champion and erstwhile England adjunct says. “And that started here.”
It besides started pinch friendship, wherever nan speech keeps going. So return america to Osasuna. “Oh, please,” Lee says. It was 1986 and he had near Liverpool, nan nine he supported and represented for a decade, winning everything. He had besides mislaid his measurement erstwhile Michael Robinson suggested joining him successful astatine nan Pamplona-based club, 90 miles south-east of wherever he sits now, and nary sooner had he met them than Lee knew. “You tin show pinch people, bully people,” he says. “It smelled right, felt right. Everything astir it.
“Michael would ever person my back. He was very supportive erstwhile I wasn’t doing well. He facilitated maine going to QPR but I didn’t adapt: it wasn’t QPR, it was me. When you time off Liverpool … I was successful specified a debased place. Michael wasn’t conscionable a colleague, a friend, he was family: loyal, loyal, loyal to nan day’s end. Until 1986, my way was set; he charted a caller way for me, came to nan rescue. Going to Spain pinch Michael was nan champion point that happened to maine aft joining Liverpool. Osasuna started nan book.”
Another chapter, astatine least. There are truthful galore stories to show and, boy, does he show them well: pinch humour and humility, a warmth and joyousness each nan greater for getting nan chance to return. He is successful bluish Spain, wherever he played from 1987 to 1988, invited to Athletic Bilbao’s Thinking Football movie festival to speak astatine nan screening of Andy Wells’ moving documentary Two Tribes astir Everton and Liverpool successful nan 1980s.
It isn’t ever easy: sound breaking, successful Spanish, Lee tells nan assemblage really proud he is of his city; he tells them that he sees a relationship to here, thing akin successful nan clubs and their cities, a shared consciousness of organization and personality that reconnects him to his experiences playing for Osasuna. Every clip he says here, it is soon apparent, he intends there too. And, he explains looking backmost successful a quiet area of a edifice barroom later, successful Pamplona he recovered a caller purpose.
Lee’s first crippled astatine Anfield was arsenic a instrumentality against Ajax successful 1966; his last crippled arsenic a subordinate came 30 years later. He joined astatine 17 but wasn’t a regular for 4 years. Captain of England Under-21s, galore of his world colleagues were playing first-team shot but then, he says, “they were astatine clubs, not Liverpool” and Liverpool were “worth waiting for”. When he left, he was a legend, victor of five convention titles and 2 European Cups. Seven years on, he was backmost arsenic a coach. By past things were different astatine a nine wherever he says “they didn’t person a kit man until Gérard Houllier came”, nan cogwheel washed erstwhile a week by nan coaches and stinking. He was different too, different calling found.
“As a subordinate I didn’t really admit it all. I understood everything a batch more, nan process, erstwhile I became a coach. You person a full squad of players to deliberation astir and I for illustration that. Nothing tin ever switch playing but I for illustration coaching and now admit each they did for us: group for illustration Ronnie Moran, Joe Fagan.
“It kills maine erstwhile group opportunity we weren’t coached. Yeah, Bob Paisley was nan ‘grandad’ pinch nan slippers and nan [flat] cap, but an example: 1981 [European Cup] semi-final. We’re lining up, fresh to meet Bayern [Munich] successful nan tunnel. And Bob goes: ‘Listen, we’re going to alteration 1 point tonight: [Paul] Breitner. We’re going man-to-man.’ This hasn’t been talked about. ‘What nan fuck are we going man-to-man for? And, moreover worse, it’s Sammy: we’re putting him connected Breitner?!’ Fantastic man-management. If I’d been told nan nighttime before, I would person been shitting myself and location would person been a mutiny. But I ne'er had time. I went retired and he ne'er sewage a footwear … and neither did I. Howard Gayle comes connected and runs them ragged.
“Bob would guidelines astatine Melwood, 1 limb cocked connected nan radiator, watch nan two-lap warm-up and could show if personification had an ailment. No kidding. He had a awesome backroom: Ronnie Moran, Roy Evans, Tom Saunders. I loved them. They were truthful astute; they coached, but lightly. Football is simply a elemental game, made analyzable by group for illustration me: coaches trying to warrant our existence. I cognize coaches who’ve said: ‘I made him …’ Ah-huh? Seriously? The managers I’ve worked pinch understood you tin over-coach, stifle. In nan end, it’s astir nan champion players successful nan champion positions.”
And Liverpool had them. The database is agelong and Lee is keen not to time off anyone retired but Graeme Souness stood above: “A leader, captain, mentor, who moreover smelt amended than us. You spot him now and he could aquatics nan transmission each morning.”
Leaving was hard, each Lee had ever wanted down him, aliases truthful he feared. “When your sell-by day is there, Liverpool know,” he says. “I get that. In 1984 I played 67 games. That takes its toll and, if I’m honest, professionally I took my oculus disconnected nan ball, fto standards slip. You’ve won nan European Cup doubly … Until 1986 everything was smooth, section kid playing for Liverpool, but I mislaid focus. The penning was connected nan wall. They show you, successful different ways: Steve McMahon was Kenny [Dalglish]’s first signing and he was brilliant. I didn’t really want to time off but I had to. It’s difficult to accept. I wanted to play.
“I went to QPR pinch Jim Smith, but I wasn’t right. Michael told maine astir Osasuna. Pedro Zabalza was nan coach, a lovely, beautiful person, who wanted an English style, which goes down amended successful nan north. It’s an honorable club, humble but fantastic. Going overseas helps tie a statement nether that [low]. A different culture, football, different spotlight. It was wonderful. It enhanced maine arsenic a person.
“Back home, we hold until we get injured aliases our profession ends [to see coaching], though it’s changing now. When I was here, astatine Osasuna, location were young lads studying their badges already. I was like: ‘What’s that each about?’ Later I became reserve squad coach astatine Liverpool nether Souness. After astir four, 5 weeks, he says: ‘Now, perceive …’ I thought I was getting sacked. ‘Oh, present we go.’ He said: ‘You should get your FA coaching qualifications.’ I crap myself. But you cognize what? Best point that ever happened to me.”
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Lee worked astatine Bolton, Everton, West Brom and Crystal Palace nether Sam Allardyce: “Sam’s brilliant, brilliant. There are a batch of misconceptions astir him. He’s very innovative, very forward-thinking. He’s a diamond.” Could it person worked for England pinch him? “It would person worked. Some of my champion times were moving pinch him.”
There were others. Southampton pinch Ronald Koeman, wherever he came crossed Virgil van Dijk, a defender who “led pinch a velvet glove”, he says. “Ronald and I said Spanish, and later I worked pinch Rafa Benítez. So overmuch for not needing Spanish astatine school.” Was Koeman’s English not that good? “My English,” Lee replies. Then of people location was England, first pinch Peter Taylor and adjacent pinch Sven-Göran Eriksson. Eriksson moreover suggested Lee could beryllium his successor; nan FA, he said, should beforehand from within.
“Should beryllium me?!” For a infinitesimal there’s silence, shock. “I didn’t cognize that,” Lee says. “Wow. That’s news to me. Honestly, that is humbling. I was pinch him astatine 2 World Cups. He was truthful warm, truthful warm. He was lovely. When we sewage knocked retired successful Baden-Baden I knocked connected his door. I had tears successful my eyes. I said: ‘I can’t convey you enough.’ The players loved him.
“The debriefing is: we’ve been knocked out, we’re going home. But sometimes you person to respect nan opposition. You suffer to Brazil successful 2002, Portugal successful 2006. People deliberation we should triumph it. I get that: we person aspirations, we’re England. But it’s not a gimme. Those guys couldn’t person fixed america more. Sometimes nan anticipation is simply a spot much, nan critique aimed astatine players. We were knocked retired by [great teams]. I don’t get being termed ‘failures’. I would ne'er see what England person done a failure. There is simply a big, large unit put connected our boys; we look to bask successful criticising them.”
The coach too. Did appreciation for Eriksson travel excessively late, not until he fell ill? “What disappointed us,” Lee admits, “was that they didn’t talk astir Sven’s prowess arsenic a coach; they talked astir [the worldly where] nan tabloids sewage involved.”
In Baden-Baden, he had seen it up close: nan intrusion, nan pressure, nan relentless noise. He didn’t for illustration it, that overmuch is clear, but nor would he fto it impact him, he says, and nan thought that playing for England is much chore than honour, is dismissed. It must beryllium difficult not to beryllium dragged down by it, though? At times, it must measurement upon you? “No,” he says, because successful nan extremity it’s astir nan game, nan people. And location it is again: nan enthusiasm that Souness saw successful him, that Taylor and Eriksson did, that he recovered successful Pamplona, that makes him specified bully company.
“But,” Lee adds, “I wouldn’t compartmentalise it. You can’t bask nan camaraderie and not nan competing. I bask trying to get nan champion retired of players and to my knowledge whenever I’ve been involved, they’ve ever been very, very good prepared, very passionate. ‘It’s each astir nan craic’? No. It’s not a large laugh, a joke, a jolly: nan joyousness comes from seeing these young guys activity ever truthful difficult to beryllium nan champion versions of themselves. There were pressures of course. And I don’t for illustration being beaten. I don’t for illustration coming location from Japan early. I don’t for illustration losing successful Germany. But I loved it, mate. I loved it. And it started here.”
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