Gary McAllister: What I REALLY remember most about the Alaves game
Former Liverpool midfielder Gary McAllister has told FourFourTwo of his bizarre overriding memory from Liverpool’s 2001 UEFA Cup Final victory over Alaves.
The Reds saw off their Spanish opponents 5-4 in Dortmund that night, as part of a memorable cup treble from the 2000/01 season.
McAllister, then 36, starred in the final as Liverpool overcame Jordi Cruyff & Co. – but the game itself is not what immediately springs to mind.
“I scored, had a hand in the winner and was given the man-of-the-match award by one of my heroes, Johan Cruyff,” says the Scot, speaking in the June 2016 issue of FourFourTwo magazine. “But what I remember most about that night was the huge dildo that landed on the pitch!
“I was taking a corner in the second half, Robbie Fowler was warming up next to me in front of our supporters, and suddenly there was a thud. Robbie and I both looked at it, and I said: ‘Is that a…?’ ‘Yes Gary,’ said Robbie. ‘That is a dildo.’
“Nonchalantly, Robbie walked over to it, flicked it up with his right foot and volleyed it back into the crowd with his left. That’s what I remember about that night!”
Read the full One-on-One interview with Gary McAllister in the June 2016 issue of FourFourTwo magazine. A European Championship special, we chat exclusively to Wayne Rooney, Ross Barkley and Harry Kane about whether this could finally be England’s year, hear from Ashley Williams, Joe Ledley and Ben Davies on the Dragons’ aims in France, speak to Seamus Coleman, James McCarthy and Wes Hoolahan about the Boys in Green’s ambitions, and get the inside track on Northern Ireland from Jonny Evans, Gareth McAuley, Chris Baird and manager Michael O’Neill. If that’s not enough, we recount the best and most bonkers clashes between the five sides from the British Isles and map out each of England’s penalty shootout kicks since 1990. And we haven’t even mentioned our separate 68-page Euro 2016 preview guide yet, featuring even more interviews and everything you need to know about this summer’s extravaganza. Go get it, then subscribe!
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Joe was the Deputy Editor at FourFourTwo until 2022, having risen through the FFT academy and been on the brand since 2013 in various capacities.
By weekend and frustrating midweek night he is a Leicester City fan, and in 2020 co-wrote the autobiography of former Foxes winger Matt Piper – subsequently listed for both the Telegraph and William Hill Sports Book of the Year awards.