FAGAN: NO ORDINARY JOE

 

Image Credit- Liverpool F.C. 

Liverpool F.C. on their You Tube Channel have released a 15 minutes documentary (Fagan: No Ordinary Joe) on their former manager Joe Fagan. The documentary begins with his early life which was full of struggle. 

In the year 1938 he signed his contract with Manchester City. However his playing career was disrupted because of the Second World War. As his playing career came to an end he decided to get into football coaching.

In December, 1959 Joe Fagan joined Liverpool and started working with Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley. He was assigned the task of coaching the club's reserve team. In 1974 when Shankly retired, he was appointed as an assistant manager. Eventually in 1983 he was appointed as the Manager of Liverpool F.C. when Paisley decided to step down from his job. 

In his very first season as the Liverpool Manager he won the treble of League Cup, Football League First Division and European Cup. In his second season, Liverpool again reached the finals of the European Cup.

But, this time they were unable to defend their title as Juventus won their first European Cup. However this final became a tragic final not because of Liverpool's defeat but because of Heysel Stadium disaster which resulted in death of 39 people and more than 600 people were injured. The Heysel Stadium Disaster caused Fagan great distress and he decided to step down just after 2 seasons as Liverpool Manager. 

Whenever we talk about great Liverpool managers the names Shankly and Paisley immediately comes in our mind. But, we often forget about Joe Fagan who silently played his part and helped Liverpool F.C. reach the pinnacle of club football. 

This documentary is a perfect tribute to the man who won it all. A must watch for every football fan.