Ladies and Gentleman: The class of Phil Neal

B Cantona

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Just seen this on another forum. It's an old piece from 2005, but I was unaware of it. The journalist has gathered the opinion of people involved on the night in Heysel, but 20 years on

Full article is here: Heysel - The witnesses | Football | The Observer

This is what Phil Neal had to say:

Phil Neal
Then: Liverpool captain, 34
Now: Merseyside Radio commentator

I'd rather forget that night. It was an ordeal. But, Jamie, why should I help you out? I'm helping you pay your mortgage [by talking to you about Heysel]. When people ask me for my view, they usually have to pay for it. You're asking for my help for nothing. To pay your mortgage, Jamie. I mean, what do you want from me?

I just thought that as the captain of Liverpool football club on that night at Heysel it would be good to hear your view?

Yes but what do you want from me? If I talk to you for a few minutes, then I'm helping you pay your mortgage and what am I getting in return? Do you know what I mean?

Well, I have been to Italy and talked with some of the families of the victims and they say that the trophy should be given back by Juventus to commemorate what happened.

About Juventus? Why are you asking me? Why are you asking someone on the Liverpool side? Juventus made amends very soon. Ask them ... Jamie I'm helping you pay your mortgage. People who want my views pay.

I'm sorry, but everyone else I have spoken to has ...

Great. So you've spoken to people, you've got your views. You've got your Liverpool view, but if you want mine for free, well people pay for them.
 
feck me but he manages to come across as a complete classless twat. He seriously wants to be paid to talk about Heysel? Jesus
 
That's disgusting.

Just looking at their team that night and nearly the entire team have become pundits in some form. I don't think any of them would ask for money to talk about this. Also a real shame that it took Liverpool 20 years to accept any form of responsibilty for it.
 
I genuinely don't understand how you can be that blase and mercenary about something so tragic that happened; and refuse to give some comments on the matter just to try to weasel money for it, or to act like a twat for the sake of it.

I hadn't seen that before. I wasn't a fan of Neal previously, but I'm still surprised by how cold he comes across there.
 
EricaNo7 said:
apparently he used to have " most decorated player " on his business cards - until giggsy overtook him of course
Click to expand...

Does he now use "England's most capped right-back"?

Oh hang on...

Gary_Neville8.jpg
 
Disgraceful stance he has taken on this.

I remember watching a documentary a few years back about Heysel. Apparently when he was asked to address the crowd to calm them down, he was, perhaps understandably, shitting himself and at one point asked one of the officials to hold his hand.

In that respect you could say he more than any of the other players experienced the fear of Heysel, so to see his views on that interview is absolutely disgusting.
 
B Cantona said:
Just seen this on another forum. It's an old piece from 2005, but I was unaware of it. The journalist has gathered the opinion of people involved on the night in Heysel, but 20 years on

Full article is here: Heysel - The witnesses | Football | The Observer

This is what Phil Neal had to say:

Phil Neal
Then: Liverpool captain, 34
Now: Merseyside Radio commentator

I'd rather forget that night. It was an ordeal. But, Jamie, why should I help you out? I'm helping you pay your mortgage [by talking to you about Heysel]. When people ask me for my view, they usually have to pay for it. You're asking for my help for nothing. To pay your mortgage, Jamie. I mean, what do you want from me?

I just thought that as the captain of Liverpool football club on that night at Heysel it would be good to hear your view?

Yes but what do you want from me? If I talk to you for a few minutes, then I'm helping you pay your mortgage and what am I getting in return? Do you know what I mean?

Well, I have been to Italy and talked with some of the families of the victims and they say that the trophy should be given back by Juventus to commemorate what happened.

About Juventus? Why are you asking me? Why are you asking someone on the Liverpool side? Juventus made amends very soon. Ask them ... Jamie I'm helping you pay your mortgage. People who want my views pay.

I'm sorry, but everyone else I have spoken to has ...

Great. So you've spoken to people, you've got your views. You've got your Liverpool view, but if you want mine for free, well people pay for them.
Click to expand...
:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:
 
Here's another piece of excellent commentary by Bjørge 'Your boys took a hell of a beating' Lillelien, same game, this time about Neal: "Så blir han felt av grisen Phil Neal. Rampen Phil Neal sparker Tommy overende bakfra. Phil Gris Neal! Begynn å ta igjen gutter! Begynn å ta igjen! Engelskmennene har ramp både på banen og tribunen. Tom Lund gikk forbi to engelskmenn, Phil Neal overfalt ham bakfra! For en gris! For en fotballramp Phil Neal er! Dette skal han ha igjen gutter, ta ham ved første anledning."

Someone else translate it.
 
Laphroaig said:
Here's another piece of excellent commentary by Bjørge 'Your boys took a hell of a beating' Lillelien, same game, this time about Neal: "Så blir han felt av grisen Phil Neal. Rampen Phil Neal sparker Tommy overende bakfra. Phil Gris Neal! Begynn å ta igjen gutter! Begynn å ta igjen! Engelskmennene har ramp både på banen og tribunen. Tom Lund gikk forbi to engelskmenn, Phil Neal overfalt ham bakfra! For en gris! For en fotballramp Phil Neal er! Dette skal han ha igjen gutter, ta ham ved første anledning."

Someone else translate it.
Click to expand...

"And he gets taken down by the swine Phil Neal. The thug Phil Neal hacks Tommy (Tom Lund) down from behind. Start getting them back! The English have thugs on the pitch as well as in the stands! Tom Lund went past two englishmen, Phil Neal assaulted him from behind! What a swine! What a hooligan Phil Neal is! He's gonna get revenge for this, lads, get him back at the first opportunity."

Correct me If I'm wrong.
 
The Caveman said:
"And he gets taken down by the swine Phil Neal. The thug Phil Neal hacks Tommy (Tom Lund) down from behind. Start getting them back! The English have thugs on the pitch as well as in the stands! Tom Lund went past two englishmen, Phil Neal assaulted him from behind! What a swine! What a hooligan Phil Neal is! He's gonna get revenge for this, lads, get him back at the first opportunity."

Correct me If I'm wrong.
Click to expand...
The problems are 'ramp' and 'gris'. I don't think 'swine' has the same connotations as 'gris'. (Noggies will call a dirty player a 'gris', but the true meaning of 'gris' is pig or swine.) 'Ramp' has a charmingly exotic feel to it, it's either a bit archaic or juvenile, thug is too logical or correct. I might be wrong.
 
Laphroaig said:
The problems are 'ramp' and 'gris'. I don't think 'swine' has the same connotations as 'gris'. (Noggies will call a dirty player a 'gris', but the true meaning of 'gris' is pig or swine.) 'Ramp' has a charmingly exotic feel to it, it's either a bit archaic or juvenile, thug is too logical or correct. I might be wrong.
Click to expand...

I used the words I thought was closest to what Lillelien meant/what Lillelien would have said if it was said today in English. And I think thug covers what Lillelien meant by "ramp" at the time ie. someone whose purpose in the game was not the football but sabotaging the opposition by playing hard or ugly. I interpret it like he's talking about a Michael Brown-like player. A thug.

Swine I'm not so sure about. In Redcafe terms you could just say cnut but it wouldn't be appropriate in this instance. Bastard or cheat maybe?
 
I remember him once doing an "expert" commentary on an England match. I can't remeber who the opponents were but shortly intro the game an England player was brought down and the referee rightly awarded a free kick. Neil went ballistic, very high pitched and was basically inferring that the ref should have sent the player off (it really wasn't that bad). However, two minutes later an England defender did the same to one of their strikers and Neil chimed in that it was the right thing to do as he "had to let him know he's there". Now there's bias and bias, but when you're being paid to comment on a match then you need to bring a little bit of evenness or else you end up sounding stupid: step forward Phil Neil.
 
In his book, Phil Neal said European games for Liverpool in the late 70's and early 80's weren't taken seriously by the players. They used to treat it as a bit of a piss-up. The opposition were so inferior (Finnish fishermen and the like) that they could just treat it as a joke, and stroll their way to the semi-finals. The comments make him look like an arrogant prick, but it also puts Liverpool's European achievements into some context, which they're so keen to rub in our faces. Their 'great' history is built largely on piss-ups, playing mismatches against a bunch of part-timers and amateurs (until the later rounds at least).
 
Kraftwerker said:
In his book, Phil Neal said European games for Liverpool in the late 70's and early 80's weren't taken seriously by the players. They used to treat it as a bit of a piss-up. The opposition were so inferior (Finnish fishermen and the like) that they could just treat it as a joke, and stroll their way to the semi-finals. The comments make him look like an arrogant prick, but it also puts Liverpool's European achievements into some context, which they're so keen to rub in our faces. Their 'great' history is built largely on piss-ups, playing mismatches against a bunch of part-timers and amateurs (until the later rounds at least).
Click to expand...

Wait for it now - there will be a stampede of them replying with "But it was so much harder to qualify for it then". Which is true but irrelevant to the point of the quality (lack of) of most of their opponents.
 
B Cantona said:
Some of the responses to the article at the time

Letters | Sport | The Observer
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The stench of hypocrisy and insincerity in Liverpool was overwhelming last month when Juventus visited. Liverpool FC have not showed much remorse over events at Heysel in the 20 years since. They shamefully blamed all and sundry then, rather than unilaterally pulling themselves out of European competition, disgracefully decided to drag every other English team into their mess. If they hadn't played Juve this year, no apology would have been forthcoming. None of these facts has ever been properly analysed. Liverpool FC wallow in their 'dignity', safe in the knowledge that the timid media will never give them the contempt they deserve for what was said and done after Heysel.
Brian Stevens, Liverpool

:eek:
 
anything about now said:
The stench of hypocrisy and insincerity in Liverpool was overwhelming last month when Juventus visited. Liverpool FC have not showed much remorse over events at Heysel in the 20 years since. They shamefully blamed all and sundry then, rather than unilaterally pulling themselves out of European competition, disgracefully decided to drag every other English team into their mess. If they hadn't played Juve this year, no apology would have been forthcoming. None of these facts has ever been properly analysed. Liverpool FC wallow in their 'dignity', safe in the knowledge that the timid media will never give them the contempt they deserve for what was said and done after Heysel.
Brian Stevens, Liverpool

:eek:
Click to expand...

Could be a Evertonian.

Needless to say, what a classless cnut. It also pretty much sums up Liverpool. I wonder how many hubcap's Neal has stolen in his time.
 
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