They Played for Spurs and Liverpool

Robbie Keane is the last to join the collection of players who have played for both Spurs and Liverpool but he added another twist by returning to Tottenham within six months.  Technically, Jamie Redknapp, the son of the Spurs manager, also did a 'Keane' as he started as a schoolboy with Spurs before going to Bournemouth, was transferred to Liverpool and finally joined Spurs at the end of his career.

Ray Clemence

Surprisingly, the first player transfer between Tottenham and Liverpool took place only thirty years ago.  Spurs signed Ray Clemence in the summer of 1981 after twelve successful years at Anfield.  The England international goalkeeper helped Spurs to retain the FA Cup in 1982 but missed out on the UEFA Cup Final two years later due to injury.  On his retirement he took up a coaching role with the club and during the Terry Venables 'reign' was joint First team coach with Doug Livermore in season 1992-93.  Clemence was 33 years old when he joined Spurs who had been looking for a top class goalkeeper since the departure of Pat Jennings four years earlier when at the age of thirty two, Keith Burkinshaw deemed him to be past his best.  While Clemence had a successful time at White Hart Lane he will always be remembered, first and foremost, as a Liverpool player.

Prior to the Clemence transfer, only one player had played for both clubs.  Joe Brough, a half-back, had joined Spurs from Stoke City in July, 1908 following their election to the Football League.  Ill-health during his time with Spurs meant he only made three appearances before returning to his former club, Burslem Port Vale.

From Anfield to White Hart Lane

Paul Walsh had four years with Liverpool in the mid-eighties before joining Spurs in February, 1988 for £500,000 as Terry Venables first major signing.  He spent four seasons at White Hart Lane and made an appearance as a substitute in the 1991 FA Cup Final.  He made over 150 League and Cup appearances, scoring 21 goals.  In his final season at White Hart Lane he had a period on loan with QPR before joining Portsmouth for £500,000 in May, 1992 as part of the transfer agreement which brought Darren Anderton to Spurs.

Ronnie Rosenthal joined Spurs in January, 1994 for £250,000.  He had joined Liverpool, initially on loan, from Standard Liege in March, 1990.  He made 100 League and Cup appearances for Spurs, scoring 11 goals.  He is fondly remembered for his hat-trick in an FA Cup replay against Southampton in 1995 when his goals inspired a second half fightback from two goals down to win 6 - 2.  He joined Watford in August, 1997.

John Scales joined Spurs in 1996 after two seasons at Liverpool.  His career at Tottenham was hindered by injury so that he only made 33 appearances before joining Ipswich Town in 2000.  His only goal for Spurs was against Liverpool in a League Cup win at Anfield in 1998.

Oyvind Leonaardsen was signed by George Graham in the summer of 1999.  His career in England has started with Wimbledon where he spent four years before joining Liverpool for a season.  He spent three years with Spurs and made 54 League appearances but in 2002 he signed for Aston Villa.

Christian Ziege joined Liverpool from Middlesbrough in 2000.  The following year he joined Spurs and was a member of their losing Worthington Cup team in 2002, scoring Spurs only goal against Blackburn Rovers.  Injury restricted him to 47 League appearances and he returned to Germany in June, 2004 to play for Borussia Monchengladbach.

From Tottenham to Liverpool
Paul Stewart was the first player to move from Spurs to Liverpool.  He had joined Spurs from Manchester City as a striker but turned into quite a useful midfield player who helped scored the equalising goal in the 1991 FA Cup Final and went on to win three England caps.  He made 131 League appearances for Spurs but for family reasons asked to move back north and Liverpool signed hm in July, 1992 for £2.3 million.  Injuries hindered him during his time at Anfield and he only made 32 League appearances in four seasons, spending time out on loan.

Neil Ruddock had two spells with Spurs, signing for a second time in 1992 from Southampton.  At the end of the season, Ruddock demanded a transfer in the aftermath of the Terry Venables/Alan Sugar saga.  He was sold to Liverpool where he remained for five seasons but was rarely far away from controversy.

From White Hart Lane and Back
Robbie Keane has spent six years with Spurs and made almost two hundred League appearances, scoring 82 goals for the club as well as helping them win the 2008 Carling Cup Final when he was transferred to Liverpool for £20.3 million the following summer.  His stay at Anfield was brief and not a success, so Harry Redknapp resigned him the following January.  He played another 41 League games and scored 11 goals before joining La Galaxy in the summer of 2011.  His second spell with Tottenham was not as successful with him spending time on loan at Celtic and West Ham United.

Nineteen years earlier, Jamie Redknapp had made the similar journey, via Bournemouth.
Redknapp started as a youth player with Spurs but turned down their offer and decided to go to Bournemouth where his father was manager.  He later joined Liverpool where he made over 300 appearances, winning five major trophies.  Glenn Hoddle brought him to Spurs in 2002 but injury plagued his time in London.  He made only 48 League appearances before joined his father at Southampton in January, 2005.

They played for Tottenham and Liverpool

Nicky Barmby left Spurs for Middlesbrough in 1995 and joined Liverpool in 2000 after four seasons with Everton.  Barmby is one of only a few players to move directly across Stanley Park.

Danny Murphy spent seven years with Liverpool before joining Charlton Athletic.  He moved to Spurs in January, 2006 after two years at The Valley.  He made 23 League appearances for Spurs and eighteen months later signed for Fulham.

Graeme Souness made only one appearance for Spurs as a substitute in a UEFA Cup tie in Iceland in 1971.  Anxious to get into into first team football, he requested a move and reluctantly was allowed to sign for Middlesbrough.  He later joined Liverpool where he played our a very successful career.  Souness had been the 'new Dave Mackay' for whom Bill Nicholson had been searching but the with the impatience of youth, Souness was not prepared to wait for his time at Tottenham.

Brad Friedel started his career in England with Liverpool where he made 25 League appearances in three seasons.  He joined Blackburn Rovers and then Aston Villa and then signed for Spurs last summer.

Spurs in History - 1st March

Ronnie Rosenthal

1st March, 1995
Southampton 2 Spurs 6 (aet) F.A.Cup 5th Round Replay

On 1st March, 1995 an unlikely hero stepped forward to rescue Spurs in a 5th Round Replay.  Spurs and Southampton had drawn 1-1 at White Hart Lane and when the Sheringham/Klinsmann team found themselves two goals down just before half-time at the Dell, their Cup dreams looked to be over.

The match is remembered for the remarkable comeback and for Ronny Rosenthal’s incredible three goal contribution to the win.  Spurs’ cause looked lost when they were two goals down before half time but an inspired substitution by Gerry Francis saw him brought on as substitute just before the interval.  Rosenthal scored twice to take the game into extra time, the second from twenty five yards.  Just returned from injury Rosenthal scored twice in two minutes, having been on the pitch less than fifteen minutes.  He outdid that goal in extra time with a shot from thirty yards to put Spurs ahead and complete his hat-trick.

Then goals from Teddy Sheringham, Nick Barmby and Darren Anderton completed the 6-2 rout.

‘Rocket’ Ronnie had made a name for himself in Spurs folklore.

A Hero Needed

‘Come On You Spurs’ – Give Us A Hero!

The lyrics of Paper Lace’s 1974 anti-war song, ‘Billy Don’t Be a Hero’ remind us of the great loss of life brought about by war and the grief brought upon family and friends. A young woman is distraught that her fiancé chooses to leave the area with an Army contingent passing through the town, and go with them to fight. She laments,

"Billy, don't be a hero! Don't be a fool with your life!
"Billy, don't be a hero! Come back and make me your wife!"
And as Billy started to go, she said, "Keep your pretty head low!"
"Billy, don't be a hero! Come back to me!"

The song goes on to describe how Billy is killed in action in a pitched battle after volunteering to ride out and seek reinforcements. In the end, the woman throws away the regret letter notifying her of Billy's "heroic" death.

Football is only a game and the heroics achieved over ninety minutes on the pitch are as nothing compared to the bravery of soldiers prepared to give their lives in the line of duty – but on Wednesday evening as Spurs make their second visit to the Emirates Stadium – the one thing their game is crying out for is a hero to keep his head high and while all around are feeling the pressure, he will come through and show his true worth to the team. It’s a long, long time since Spurs have had a player who has risen to the occasion and produced an outstanding display against all the odds and when it has really mattered.

The top teams have players who are all capable of producing top-class performances when it really matters. The current Liverpool team doesn’t stand comparison with the teams of previous generations but they have won the FA Cup, the League Cup, the UEFA Cup and the biggest prize of all, the Champions League. Why? They have Steven Gerrard who has time and time again risen to the occasion, produced an outstanding performance when everything has been going against Liverpool and pulled them through – the Champions League Final, three down at half-time, in last season’s FA Cup Liverpool could have gone out in the opening round at Palace but for Gerrard and then in the Final itself, two outstanding goals with the spectacular goal at the death to snatch victory from West Ham and take the game into extra-time and eventual success. In fact, such was his influence on Liverpool winning the Final that the DVD for the Final is called ‘The Gerrard Final!’

The major difference between Spurs and Liverpool at the moment is one player who can produce amazing performances which lift the players around him and produce results above what they deserve. If only Spurs could find such a player but with their pay structure at the club they’ll never get a player of Gerrard’s caliber. However, at the moment there is a great need for one of the current players to step forward and take that mantle and make themselves a hero and what better place to do it than the Emirates Stadium – they would become an instant ‘Legend’, remembered for years to come.

In summing up last week’s 1st Leg match a radio commentator stated that at two nil Spurs had a great chance but by the end it had gone. There was an opportunity to really put one over Arsenal and make the 2nd Leg academic but it wasn’t taken. The departure of Berbatov with injury changed the game but there were enough experienced players on the Spurs’ team who should have been able to take control and dominate the game for Spurs but they didn’t and it cost them dearly – they bottled it.

Now at 2-2 for the second game on Wednesday, Spurs have it all to do. With the away goals against them Spurs can’t let the game drift and hold on to what they’ve got because in terms of reaching the Final at the moment they don’t have anything. Spurs will need to be positive against probably the Arsenal young team who will greater experience among the re-enforcements, waiting to be called upon if necessary. This is where Spurs need every player totally committed to the cause but sometimes even that isn’t enough. There have been numerous occasions in recent seasons when Spurs have given it everything, put up a fighting, gutsy performance but lost to a late goal or some other hard-luck story. To take that step to the Carling Cup Final it will need a player to really shine – be dominant, take the goal scoring chances that are presented – we’ve had enough of being the nearly team, the unlucky losers, it’s time for Spurs to strike out for glory.

Spurs have had players in the past who achieved such heights – Gascoigne and his contribution in the 1991 FA Cup being almost single-handedly responsible for getting Spurs to the Final and nobody will forget that semi-final goal! A decade earlier, Ricky Villa in the FA Cup semi-final at Highbury and then in the Final replay he was able to shake off the disappointment of the first game and scored the goals to bring the FA Cup to Tottenham. Graham Roberts in the UEFA Cup Final when all looked lost led from the front, scored the equaliser and stepped up to dispatch the first penalty in the nerve-wracking penalty shoot-out. If supporter message-boards had been around in Martin Chivers’ day he would have been criticised endlessly but in big games, he produced the goals – two in the League Cup final of 1971 and another ‘double’ against Wolves in the UEFA Cup semi-final. Jimmy Greaves, Dave Mackay, Teddy Sheringham and Jurgen Klinsmann, 1994 FA Cup semi-final excluded, were all able to show their worth – we need a player of that ilk in the team today.

Who will raise their game and take that chance to be the ‘star’ and become a hero?
If Spurs win, all eleven players will be heroes but there is a need for someone to up their performance when it really matters and inspire those around them to greater heights. It’s all very well to score the goals against Southend or Villa, or to perform lesser teams - it keeps all of us happy, but when the trophies are being handed out the question that has to be asked is, ‘Where were your goals against the best?’

The top players have that star quality and will do it in the vitally important games. Spurs’ need for a new hero on Wednesday is critical. Step forward and take that opportunity now. Robinson, Chimbonda, Dawson, Rocha, Lee, Lennon, Jenas, Zokora, Malbranque, Defdoe, Keane or whoever is selected, your chance to be immortalised in the history of Tottenham Hotspur awaits you.