Top 5 Liverpool managers of all time
By Kris Whelan
No.1 – Bill Shankly
There were no prizes for guessing who number one on the list was going to be, Bill Shankly IS Liverpool FC. If it weren’t for this incredible man, god only knows where Liverpool would be today. There is no doubt that he’s responsible for the philosophy and atmosphere that has always surrounded the club.
He may not have won as many trophies as number two on the list Bob Paisley but were it not for the infrastructure that Shankly lay down, Paisley wouldn’t have gotten the chance to shine and bring Liverpool to the unprecedented heights he did.
When Shankly took over in 1959, he saw a club in dire straits who were in need of a serious upheaval. The Reds were in the second division with no signs of progressing, until the towering and influential Shankly took the club by the scruff of the neck and dragged them up the leagues.
With all that said, it can’t be forgotten that Shankly was indeed a winning manager who won several cups at Liverpool, something the club had little experience in up until then.
He managed to win the Second division (1962), First division three times (1964, 1966 and 1973), (FA Cup twice (1965, 1974), UEFA Cup (1973) and the FA Charity Shield three times. (1964, 1965 and 1966).
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Shankly is remembered in almost mythical fashion by the Anfield faithful and though he retired over 40 years ago, the Kop still sing his name and hold banners baring his image. A true sign of the influence the man had at the club.