I like to think that many of the players from yesteryear would not be like the avaricious egotists of today.
Perhaps I’m being naive (there’s a first time for everything!), but I could see Billy Liddell choosing to wear the Liverpool shirt for considerably lower wages than he would get elsewhere.
Wasn’t there still a maximum wage limit when Liddell was playing? From what I recall he decided to stay at Liverpool when we were relegated as his family were settled.
Yeah you wouldn’t get much more anywhere.
Issue I have is once you get to a certain level does it matter. I pick to apply jobs on promotion and place to live first I wouldn’t drop down but if one was offering 40k and one is offering 37k I don’t think I’d have much of a preference if the 37k was in a better place.
These players also have access to a lot of support and experience and advice like if I suddenly went up to 80k for a year I’m not sure I could plan and make the most of that.
It was jimmy hill who led the way in getting the maximum wage abolished,
He was the PFA chairman and threatened strike action by all foitballers unless it was scrapped
I’d rather see a wage cap by team/league, than by player.
If you really want to be rid of the methodology of “buying” trophies, cap the first team player salaries at £125mil/yr. U21 and youth teams at £10mil/yr so you can’t hide top earners in the youth ranks.
If my math is correct, that gives you 25spots at £5mil/season. not a bad wage for kicking a a ball around.
Yeah that’s the fairest way and you’d get certain clubs wasting it on one guy who can’t be arsed (Looks at Man Utd).
Doesn’t really work in an open system (ie one where players have many leagues they can play in that can pay big wages) like football. Even in much more closed sports like rugby league in Aus the salary cap is still open to abuse via third part payments. If you are proposing players total wages including endorsements etc are limited to a similar level for all clubs then either big name players won’t play in the PL or the cap will have to be so high that only the richest clubs will utilise it (and the likes of citeh will still do as they do now). Fundamentally clubs need to have to pay players via a third party organisation for real time auditing with all clubs signing up to a disciplinary regime that includes immediate and unappealable harsh penalties for circumventing the rules including expulsion from the league.
you can’t say that then complain that the uber-rich clubs are ruling the sport.
There’s hockey leagues all over the world. But you’re saying the NHL Salary cap doesn’t work? Look at the winners of the Stanley cup over the last 30 years, aside from them all being American it’s pretty diverse list. I’d say, it actually works!
Players are still required to file tax returns, banks are still required to report large money movements which are inconsistent with their salaries.
People will ALWAYS find ways to sidestep the riles. in the MLB, they have a luxury tax which the rich clubs have to pay when the break a salary barrier and that tax gets split up amongst the smaller clubs to level the field.
2023: Vegas Golden Knights, Coach Bruce Cassidy
2022: Colorado Avalanche, Coach Jared Bednar
2021: Tampa Bay Lightning, Coach Jon Cooper
2020: Tampa Bay Lightning, Coach Jon Cooper
2019: St. Louis Blues, Coach Craig Berube
2018: Washington Capitals, Coach Barry Trotz
2017: Pittsburgh Penguins, Coach Mike Sullivan
2016: Pittsburgh Penguins, Coach Mike Sullivan
2015: Chicago Blackhawks, Coach Joel Quenneville
2014: Los Angeles Kings, Coach Darryl Sutter
2013: Chicago Blackhawks, Coach Joel Quenneville
2012: Los Angeles Kings, Coach Darryl Sutter
2011: Boston Bruins, Coach Claude Julien
2010: Chicago Blackhawks, Coach Joel Quenneville
2009: Pittsburgh Penguins, Coach Dan Bylsma
2008: Detroit Red Wings, Coach Mike Babcock
2007: Anaheim Ducks, Coach Randy Carlyle
2006: Carolina Hurricanes, Coach Peter Laviolette
2005: n/a
2004: Tampa Bay Lightning, Coach John Tortorella
2003: New Jersey Devils, Coach Pat Burns
2002: Detroit Red Wings, Coach Scotty Bowman
2001: Colorado Avalanche, Coach Bob Hartley
2000: New Jersey Devils, Coach Larry Robinson
1999: Dallas Stars, Coach Ken Hitchcock
1998: Detroit Red Wings, Coach Scotty Bowman
1997: Detroit Red Wings, Coach Scotty Bowman
1996: Colorado Avalanche, Coach Marc Crawford
1995: New Jersey Devils, Coach Jacques Lemaire
1994: New York Rangers, Coach Mike Keenan
1993: Montreal Canadiens, Coach Jacques Demers
1992: Pittsburgh Penguins, Coach Scotty Bowman
1991: Pittsburgh Penguins, Coach Bob Johnson
1990: Edmonton Oilers, Coach John Muckler
Was barely playing for us, but it’s a nice recovery story.
Good article that; thanks for posting.
It’s also a reminder to those who are quick to slag off our players: nobody here knows what mental state they are in or what else is going on behind the scenes.
Also to add
Its why I’m particularly defensive of Andre Wisdom, Jack Dunn and Jordon Ibe when they (particularly Ibe) get laughed at for not making it at the top level.
But if you are well paid, you can get Russell Crowe to exorcise your demons
Shankly said of Phil Thompson - “he tossed up with a sparrow for a pair of legs, and lost” :0)
For anyone who’s got the Sky Sports app, there’s a compilation of Suarez’s best goals, 2011-2014. The man was a genius, I would’ve loved to have seen him in a Klopp team.
I think my favourite Suarez clip is him beating about 5 Utd defenders before megging VdS only for Kuyt to smash it in from on the goal line 
I saw this on Facebook. No idea whether this is genuine, but allegedly us in 1892 (presumably colourised) when we were all Scottish:
