Real Scouseidad- or, How John Aldridge Rewrote La Real
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- Created: Tuesday, 20 May 2025 00:37
- Written by Christopher Morley
The assertion that the signature of any player can quite literally change the identity of a club is so often hyperbole. However, is there a case for saying John Aldridge's arrival at Real Sociedad in the September of 1989, having found his first-team opportunities at Anfield limited by the emergence of Ian Rush and Peter Beardsley as Kenny Dalglish's preferred front two for Liverpool, did just that?
Back on April 12th the time had come for the next in our increasingly long line of football away day pilgrimages. This time we were heading towards the midlands and had chosen The Hawthorns as the venue for our latest first-time football experience. West Bromwich Albion were hosting Watford FC, with just a point between the clubs and both of them still harbouring ambitions for the Championship play-offs. As things have turned out, this would be my fourth time watching The Hornets, home and away, in the past couple of years. Amazingly, by the standards of Gino Pozzo, Tom Cleverley has been the manager of the away side for more than a year now, although it remains to be seen if he survives the coming summer.
