Liverpool vs Red Star Belgrade: 180 minutes that changed the Reds forever
90 minutes against Red Star Belgrade in 1973 was all it took to change Liverpool forever.
The Reds were taking on Red Star in a European competition all the way back then when disaster struck: the Yugoslavian side beat Bill Shankly‘s outfit in both legs to shock English football.
Shankly took his men away and came away with a 2-1 loss, before an Anfield European night turned into a damp squib as Liverpool lost 3-2 on aggregate.
After the result, the great manager never managed the club in Europe again – but the great change came after the inquest held following the loss.
Playing the ball out from the back was embraced, as was a more patient style of play that centered around making passes. And the result? An era of dominance in Europe.
These tactics seem modern now, and it’s easy to forget that teams from the 70s and 80s were capable of playing beautiful, flowing football. It’s also easy to think of teams like Red Star as small or insignificant, but they’ve got a magnificent history from a football rich region.
The fact that they taught Liverpool a football lessen in the early 70s proves that, as does the club’s adaptation of their tactics. While using a big center forward to bully sides and collect long balls reaped domestic success, it wasn’t really suitable for the continent and that was proven.
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And so it’s interesting to see how football fashions come and go, but the success of a possession-first, playing out from the back style can’t be understated.