LIVERPOOL: With eight minutes of the 1981 European Cup final remaining, Liverpool left-back Alan Kennedy made one of his trademark bursts forward, broke into the Real Madrid penalty area and drove home a left-footed finish to settle a tense, tactical battle.
Unlikely, unforgettable, he had the historic distinction of being the matchwinner in two finals, having also netted the decisive penalty in the shoot-out victory over AS Roma three years later.
“So proud,” reflected Kennedy. “It was a wonderful time to be a Liverpool player.”
On Saturday, the Reds meet Real again in Kiev to contest European club football’s most prized trophy.And the memories of that Paris triumph will never fade for the 63-year-old, nor will being part of a lauded Liverpool team.
“That was their mentality and Liverpool were rightly the top team in Europe,” Kennedy, who also lifted five League titles for the Reds during his eight-year stay at Anfield, said. “It was a great era, great times, but the be-all and end-all for any footballer, should be about winning trophies.”
Liverpool’s strength and focus was emphasized in that Parc des Princes showpiece. Before kick-off they had to cover up sponsor’s logos on their shirts to appease UEFA and TV broadcasters. They had concerns about the fitness of influential striker Kenny Dalglish and Kennedy himself after a broken wrist had sidelined him six weeks earlier.
“I think when you put obstacles in the way of that Liverpool team, the better they played,” he told Arab News. “We had issues with TV rights, about the state of the pitch, issues about the fitness of players, me included, but we went out to play the game and win.”
Formidable foes, Bob Paisley’s side dominated Europe in much the same way Zinedine Zidane’s side are doing at the moment. On Saturday they will seek to become the first side to win three European Cups on the bounce since Bayern Munich in 1976.
“Real Madrid are the champions and fantastic in the competition with their history,” said Kennedy. “You have to respect what they have done.
“Everyone expected Liverpool to be in contention for all the trophies too and that’s what we wanted, to push ourselves to as many finals. We wanted to win everything. Maybe we were a bit greedy, but we felt we could do it.
“I don’t think we were arrogant, although our play suggested we were good at what we did. We played a system that was attack all the time no matter if we were under the cosh or defending.
“It was a great team, everyone knew their jobs, we didn’t change for anyone. We were single-minded about winning. We had set the standards and were under pressure to win every game.”
As favorites, Real will be under similar pressure as they seek a 13th title. And Kennedy believes that his former club can claim a sixth European Cup and their first since the famous 2005 triumph over AC Milan in Istanbul when they came back from 3-0 down.
“I know it will be a great game, difficult to call,” he said.
“But I would be saying to the Liverpool players that you can win it, you are good enough to win it. Go out and play the same way you
have all season. If they do, I think they will win it.
“They may concede, but they should not change their style.”
And nor should they, as attack has been the best form of defense for Liverpool this season. In Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah, there is a frontline blessed with pace, panache and potency.
Salah, rightly, has received accolades — including the PFA and Football Writers Player of the Year awards — after a stunning debut season following his £36.9 million ($49 million) arrival from Roma.
A landmark 42 goals — a record 32 in the Premier League — and ability to create chances have seen the Egyptian ranked alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
But, for Kennedy, there can be no comparison to Dalglish, arguably the greatest Kop king.
“Kenny was special, a different type of player, always on the shoulder of the defender,” he added. “Salah comes in from the wing and scores spectacular goals. Liverpool play to his strengths as he is forever getting into the box and the right position.
“For me, Kenny, over 10 seasons, was Liverpool’s top player at that time, fantastic, and it’s difficult to put them side by side. Salah’s been wonderful, but never had a season like this before.”
Madrid’s talisman Ronaldo has. Another 43 goals for the five-time Ballon D’Or winner shows he remains a force at 33.
“I’ve always had utmost admiration for Ronaldo,” said Kennedy. “He has this ability to score in finals and show how good he is. One chance, he takes it.
“But that’s been the same with Salah too. The goals he has scored, he seems to see what comes ahead. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top.”
Liverpool and Alan Kennedy look to rerun history against Real Madrid in Kiev
Liverpool and Alan Kennedy look to rerun history against Real Madrid in Kiev
West Indies cricket team to arrive for first Test tour of Pakistan in 19 years on Jan. 6
- West Indies to play two Test matches against Pakistan in Multan from Jan. 17-29, says PCB
- West Indies last toured Pakistan for a Test series in November 2006 for three-match series
ISLAMABAD: The West Indian national men’s cricket team will arrive for their first Test tour of Pakistan in 19 years on Jan. 6, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed on Tuesday, during which they will play two Test matches.
The last time the West Indies played a Test series on Pakistani soil was in November 2006, when they played three Tests. Their last Test away Test series against Pakistan was in the UAE in October 2016, which was selected as Pakistan’s home venue for cricket series after 2009 when a militant attack in Lahore scared away international cricket teams from touring the country.
The former two-time ODI World Cup champions have, however, thrice toured Pakistan since April 2018— one for an ODI series in June 2022 and twice for a bilateral T20I series in April 2018 and December 2021.
“The West Indies cricket team will arrive in Islamabad on 6 January and after playing a three-day match against Pakistan Shaheens from 10-12 January at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, they will take on Pakistan in back-to-back Tests in Multan,” the PCB said. “The first Test will be played from 17-21 January, while the second Test will be held from 25-29 January.”
International cricket teams refused to play cricket in Pakistan for years after militants attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team’s bus in Lahore in 2009, wounding six players and killing two civilians and six security officials.
International cricket and its stars, however, slowly returned to playing in the country as the security situation in Pakistan gradually improved. The South Asian country is gearing up to host the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 from February to March next year.
This will be the first time that Pakistan will be hosting an ICC tournament on its home soil since 1996 when it co-hosted the ICC ODI World Cup won by Sri Lanka.
Inter beat Como to keep in touch with leaders Atalanta
- Como, coached by Cesc Fabregas, slipped a spot to 16th and sit just one point clear of the relegation zone
MILAN, Italy: Inter Milan saw off Como 2-0 on Monday to stretch their unbeaten run in Serie A to 11 games and move back to within three points of leaders Atalanta.
Defender Carlos Augusto headed in from a corner early in the second half before Marcus Thuram wrapped up a fourth successive league win with a thumping finish in stoppage time.
Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer made a crucial save on the hour to deny Nico Paz an equalizer as Simone Inzaghi’s side showed signs of weariness at the San Siro in what was their third outing in a week.
Thuram’s goal was his 12th of the season and sent him level with Atalanta striker Mateo Retegui for the league lead.
“Marcus is a high-class player who always trains well and has adapted very quickly to the way we play,” said Inzaghi.
“You have to congratulate Como for coming here and giving it their all, but we stayed focused and showed great maturity.”
Third-placed Inter are a point behind Napoli but have played a game less than the top two teams after their match with Fiorentina was called off at the start of December following Edoardo Bove’s sudden collapse.
Reigning champions Inter visit lowly Cagliari this weekend and could put the pressure back on Atalanta, who are away to Lazio in the late game on Saturday.
Como, coached by Cesc Fabregas, slipped a spot to 16th and sit just one point clear of the relegation zone.
Fiorentina lost more ground in the title race after falling to a 2-1 home defeat by Udinese.
Moise Kean’s early penalty gave Fiorentina the lead as they sought to shake off last weekend’s loss to Bologna that snapped the club’s eight-match winning streak in Serie A.
However, Udinese equalized shortly after half-time through Lorenzo Lucca and former France international Florian Thauvin curled in the winner from outside the area.
“The most important thing for me is not the goal but the victory. These are three important points against a very strong team,” said Udinese captain Thauvin.
Udinese stayed ninth and are eight points off the European places.
Complete lineup for February UFC event in Riyadh announced
RIYADH: Organizers confirmed on Monday the complete list of fighters for the UFC Fight Night event in the Saudi capital on Feb. 1.
Israel Adesanya versus Nassourdine Imavov is the main event for the second UFC event held in the Kingdom.
The card features Dagestani fighter Said Nurmagomedov (18-3-0) will face Brazilian Vinicius “Lok Dog” Oliveira (21-3-0), while Tajik Muhammad Naimov (11-3-0) squares off against Australian Kaan Ofli (12-3-1).
In another bout, American Terrance McKinney (15-7-0) will clash with Denmark’s Damir Hadzovic (14-7-0), and Austrian Bogdan Grad (14-2-0) will meet Brazilian Lucas Alexander (8-4-0).
Highlighting Arab representation, Egyptian Hamdy Abdelwahab (5-0-0) will take on American Jamal Boggs (11-4-0), while Bahraini Shamil Gaziev (13-1-0) faces a tough challenge against American Thomas Petersen (9-2-0).
The excitement continues as Americans Jordan Leavitt (11-3-0) and Abdul Kareem Al-Selwady (15-4-0) battle it out, and Russian Sergei Pavlovich (18-3-0) faces Surinamese fighter Jairzinho “Bigi Boy” Rozenstruik (15-5-0).
Dagestani Ikram Aliskerov (15-2-0) will take on Brazilian André Muniz (24-6-0) in a blockbuster bout.
Adesanya, the Nigerian-born New Zealander, is one of UFC’s all-time greats, making a return after a title fight against Dricus du Plessis earlier this year. He is determined to reclaim his dominance with a decisive victory over Imavov.
In June the UFC hosted the first ever event in the Kingdom, bringing the premier fighting championship to Saudi fans of MMA.
Tickets are available for the event at the anb Arena on Jan. 3.
Saudi striker Saleh Al-Shehri out of remainder of Gulf Cup after injury in first match
- Loss of the player, a standout performer recently, after picking up a muscle injury in Sunday’s 3-2 defeat by Bahrain is a significant blow
KUWAIT CITY: Saudi national team striker Saleh Al-Shehri has been ruled out of the remainder of the 26th Gulf Cup after sustaining a muscle injury during the Green Falcons’ opening match against Bahrain on Sunday.
Head coach Herve Renard made the decision to send Al-Shehri home from the team’s training camp after medical reports confirmed the injury will require treatment and rehabilitation.
Saudi Arabia suffered a 3-2 defeat in the match against Bahrain. The loss of Al-Shehri, a key player and standout performer for the team in recent months, will be a significant blow for the squad as they attempt to get their Gulf Cup campaign back on track against Yemen at Jaber Stadium in Kuwait on Wednesday.
During a training session on Monday evening, Renard divided the squad into two groups, with the players who started on Sunday focusing on recovery exercises in the gym while the remainder of the squad trained on the pitch at Al-Nassr Club Stadium.
Moves afoot for Saudi cricketers to host Sri Lanka’s stars
- ‘We plan to bring our cricketers for a friendly match with Saudi team,’ Sri Lanka envoy says
RIYADH: With the popularity of cricket in Saudi Arabia growing by leaps and bounds, do not be surprized if you see Sri Lankan cricketers playing with the Saudi team in the near future.
The Sri Lankan ambassador in Riyadh, Omar Lebbe Ameer Ajwad, in an interview with Arab News on the 50 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries, said: “We have very cordial relations and, importantly, have taken initiatives to further elevate our bilateral ties in all areas of mutual interest, one of them is cricket.
“We are in touch with the Saudi Arabian Cricket Federation. So we will work with them in the future, to organize bilateral matches, cricket matches between the two sides, the Sri Lankan team and the Saudi team,” the envoy told Arab News.
“We are planning to have the kind of bilateral ties in which the cricket team can visit. So we are working on that. We have initiated some talks. I met SACF Chairman Prince Saud bin Mishal Al-Saud,” Ajwad said.
The SACF chairman has also visited Sri Lanka for cooperation in cricket, he added.
“We will bring our cricket stars here, to start some kind of a friendly match. Maybe we can work on that to mark the occasion as we are celebrating 50 years of our diplomatic ties,” the ambassador said.
"All these projects are in our plan. Of course, we are having a list of items to celebrate this milestone in our bilateral relations,” he added.
Sri Lankan cricket star and former captain Kumar Sangakkara was in NEOM as part of the second season of the NEOM and Rajasthan Royals’ cricket program, he said.
“He was in NEOM. So in the future we will interact like this, bringing Sri Lankan cricketers to the Kingdom,” he added.
Indian cricket star and former captain Rahul Dravid, who is head coach of the Indian Premier League team Rajasthan Royals, also attended the NEOM cricket program.
The Red Sea city of Jeddah last month hosted the TATA IPL mega auction at the Abadi Al-Johar Arena that attracted a galaxy of international cricket stars and the celebrity owners of the IPL franchises.
The SACF described the TATA IPL mega auction as “a historic sporting achievement in Jeddah.”
On X, the IPL posted: “TATA IPL partners got to experience ‘TATAIPLAuction’ in Jeddah like never before,” describing the event as “a historic moment in the TATA IPL Auction.”
Pakistani cricketing legends including Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar also visited the Kingdom in the recent past and held meetings with the SACF chairman to discuss the development of cricket and ways to cooperate.
