Bob Paisley
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Robert Paisley (23 January 1919 – 14 February 1996) was an English professional
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
manager and player who played as a wing-half. He spent almost 50 years with
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
and is regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time. Reluctantly taking the job in 1974, he built on the foundations laid by his predecessor Bill Shankly. Paisley is the first of four managers to have won the European Cup three times. He is also one of five managers to have won the English top-flight championship as both a player and manager at the same club. Paisley came from a small
County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...
mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...
community and, in his youth, played for
Bishop Auckland Bishop Auckland ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish at the confluence of the River Wear and the River Gaunless in County Durham, England. It is northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham, England, Durham. M ...
, before he signed for Liverpool in 1939. During the Second World War he served in the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
, and could not make his Liverpool debut until 1946. In the 1946–47 season, he was a member of the Liverpool team that won the First Division title for the first time in 24 years. He was made club captain in 1951, and remained with Liverpool until he retired from playing in 1954. He stayed with the club, and took on the two roles of reserve team coach and club physiotherapist. By this time, Liverpool had been relegated to the Second Division and its facilities were in decline. Shankly was appointed Liverpool manager in December 1959, and he promoted Paisley to work alongside him as his assistant in a management/coaching team that included Joe Fagan and Reuben Bennett. Under their leadership, the fortunes of Liverpool turned around dramatically and, in the 1961–62 season, the team gained promotion back to the First Division. Paisley filled an important role as tactician under Shankly's leadership, and the team won numerous honours during the next twelve seasons. In 1974, Shankly retired as manager and, despite Paisley's own initial reluctance, he was appointed as Shankly's successor. He went on to lead Liverpool through a period of domestic and European dominance, winning twenty honours in nine seasons: six League Championships, three League Cups, six Charity Shields, three European Cups, one
UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
and one
UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup Association football, football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's offic ...
. He won honours at a rate of 2.2 per season, a rate surpassed only by Pep Guardiola. At the time of his retirement he had won the Manager of the Year Award a record six times. He retired from management in 1983 and was succeeded by Joe Fagan. He died in 1996, aged 77, after having
Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...
for several years.


Early life

Bob Paisley was born on Thursday 23 January 1919, in the small County Durham coal mining village of Hetton-le-Hole. Paisley described it as "a close-knit community where coal was king and football was religion".bobpaisley.com – The Man
. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
His father Sam was a miner and his mother Emily a housewife. They had four sons: Willie, Bob, Hugh and Alan in age order. On the day Paisley was born, 150,000 miners nationwide went on strike for a shorter working week. Paisley attended a local school until he was thirteen and, like his friends there, had to rely on soup kitchens to supplement a meagre diet. In 1926, during the General Strike when he was seven, he had to scramble over slag heaps to collect coal dust that his parents could mix with water to create a crude fuel. Life was difficult for working-class families and, as Paisley recalled: "We lived in a small terraced house, and although we never went short of life's essentials, there was never much money left over by the end of the week". Paisley was an outstanding footballer at Eppleton Primary School and helped his team win seventeen trophies in a four-year period. Throughout his playing career, he was a left half. After leaving school at the age of 14, Paisley initially worked alongside his father at the pit and was there when his father had an underground accident which rendered him unable to work for five years. The mine was closed down and he trained to become a bricklayer. Paisley had joined Hetton Football Club after leaving school in 1933 and continued to attract notice as a member of their junior team. He had a boyhood dream of playing for
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...
but when he was recommended to them by Hetton he was rejected as being "too small".bobpaisley.com – The Player
. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
Instead, he signed for
Bishop Auckland Bishop Auckland ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish at the confluence of the River Wear and the River Gaunless in County Durham, England. It is northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham, England, Durham. M ...
before the 1937–38 season for three shillings and sixpence per match.


Bishop Auckland and arrival at Liverpool

Paisley played for "the Bishops" for two seasons until he was signed by
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
in May 1939, a few months after his twentieth birthday. The Bishops were one of the top non-league teams in England and Paisley called them "the Kings of Amateur Football". In Paisley's second season with them, they achieved a treble by winning the Northern League championship, the FA Amateur Cup and the Durham County Challenge Cup. The FA Amateur Cup final was played in Durham at Roker Park where the Bishops defeated Willington 3–0 after extra time. During the season, Paisley was approached by Liverpool manager George Kay and promised that he would sign for Liverpool at the end of the season. He kept his promise even though Sunderland reconsidered and made another approach. Paisley's last match for the Bishops was on Saturday, 6 May 1939 in the Durham County Challenge Cup final against
South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England; it is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. The town was once known in Roman Britain, Roman times as ''Arbeia'' and as ''Caer Urfa'' by the Early Middle Ag ...
, also played at Roker Park. The following Monday, Paisley travelled by train to
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
where he was met at Exchange station by Andy McGuigan who accompanied him to Anfield. He signed his contract and began an association that would last half a century. His signing on fee was £25 and his wages were £8 a week in the season and £6 a week during the summer. He recalled: "I was full of beans that day, but it was very quiet really. I was met at the station and after that long trek up Scotland Road in a tramcar, I found there were only one or two youngsters at the groundBilly Liddell, Eddie Spicer and Ray Lambert. The rest had been recruited for the territorials". Following pre-season training, Paisley took part in two reserve team games at the start of the 1939–40 season but all competitions were cancelled after war was declared on 3 September. Paisley had got to know Matt Busby, who was then Liverpool's club captain and was grateful for the advice and encouragement which Busby gave him. Paisley said that Busby was "a man you could look up to and respect". On 8 September 1939, the
British Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
advised
The Football Association The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...
(the FA) that clubs could stage friendly matches outside evacuation areas and Liverpool were able to take part in such matches, constrained by unavailability of players in the services, throughout the war. Liverpool's first wartime friendly was at Sealand Road against
Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...
on 16 September. Paisley took part in 34 of these matches between 1939 and 1941, scoring ten goals.


Second World War

Paisley was twenty when the Second World War began and in October he was called up into the
Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
who assigned him to the
Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
in which he was a gunner in the 73rd Medium Regiment. This regiment was a war-formed battery unit utilising medium range artillery (
field gun A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances (field artillery ...
s) that saw service in the United Kingdom until August 1941, North Africa until 1944 and finally Italy until 1945. Paisley was stationed at several camps throughout Great Britain including one at Rhyl.Keith, p. 22. For a long time, he was stationed at a camp near Tarporley in
Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...
which was about thirty miles from Anfield. Stan Liversedge describes one occasion when Paisley was given clearance by the Army to play for Liverpool against Everton in the 1940 Liverpool Senior Cup final. To get there, he had to use his bicycle and cycle nearly the whole way. He left the bike in
Birkenhead Birkenhead () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. It lies within the Historic counties of England, historic co ...
and hitched a lift through the Mersey Tunnel. After the match, he had to do the same journey in reverse to return to camp. Although it was a relatively unimportant match of local interest only, Paisley recalled that "an estimated 30,000 turned up". Everton, the reigning league champions, won the match 4–2. That was Paisley's first encounter with Everton. He got his revenge soon afterwards on 1 April 1940 when he played alongside Matt Busby and Billy Liddell in a depleted Liverpool team who "sprang a surprise" by defeating Everton 3–1 at
Goodison Park Goodison Park is a Association football, football stadium in Walton, Liverpool, Walton, Liverpool, England, it was the home of Premier League club Everton F.C., Everton from 1892 until 2025. It is now the home of Everton F.C. (women), Everton's ...
. John Keith recounts that Paisley's football skills saved him from a posting to the Far East which would inevitably have resulted in his becoming a
prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
of the Japanese. He was captain of the 73rd's team and, when his battery was due to be posted, his commanding officer transferred him to another battery so that he could remain in Britain and lead the regimental team. His old unit was subsequently overrun by the Japanese. At the end of August 1941, on the bank holiday, Paisley was posted overseas and did not return to England until 1945. He went in a troopship to
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
, the voyage lasting ten weeks because they had to sail around South Africa. He spent
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
in Egypt and then received his first mail from England which turned out to be a postcard from George Kay asking him if he would be available to play for Liverpool against Preston North End ( Bill Shankly's team) in the season opener three months earlier. While he was in Egypt, Paisley became interested in
horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...
through friendship with
jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...
Reg Stretton and trainer Frank Carr. Paisley learned to ride himself and he retained this interest after the war, often studying form in his spare moments. He was stationed south of
Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
and learned to drive a 15 cwt. truck. More importantly, he had a month's training on firing anti-tank guns, a skill he needed in the desert as a member of the Eighth Army in Operation Crusader which relieved the Siege of Tobruk. During periods of leave from the conflict, Paisley returned to Cairo where he was mostly involved in team sports, not only football but also
cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
and hockey. He represented the Combined Services football team as well as playing for his regiment. Paisley was involved in the
Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...
and subsequently fought his way across North Africa until the final defeat of the
Afrika Korps The German Africa Corps (, ; DAK), commonly known as Afrika Korps, was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its Africa ...
in 1943. He only suffered an injury once when he was temporarily blinded by sand sprayed into his face by explosive bullets fired from an aircraft during a
Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...
attack on his unit.Keith, p. 24. In 1943, Paisley went with the Eighth Army into Sicily and then into Italy. Whilst he was on active service in Italy he received the news that his younger brother Alan, aged fifteen, had died at home from scarlet fever and diphtheria. In June 1944, Paisley took part in the liberation of Rome and rode into the city on top of a
tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...
, an event he recalled 33 years later when Liverpool won the 1977 European Cup final in Rome's Stadio Olimpico. Paisley's regiment moved on to
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
where they encamped at
ACF Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Florence, Tuscany. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while ...
's Stadio Artemio Franchi. In Florence, Paisley saw
boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...
exhibitions by Joe Louis and Sugar Ray Robinson which generated another sporting interest and one for which he and Bill Shankly shared a passion while they worked together.Keith, p. 25. Paisley finally returned to England in 1945 and was stationed at Royal Arsenal, Woolwich Arsenal until he was demobilisation, demobbed. Shortly before that, he met his future wife Jessie, a schoolteacher, on a train at Maghull. She recalled her father being unimpressed that she had met a soldier who was a professional footballer in civilian life so she added that Paisley had worked as a bricklayer too. Her father said: "Oh, that's a proper job so that's alright then". On 17 July 1946, Bob and Jessie were married in Liverpool at All Souls Church, Springwood. They raised a family of two sons and one daughter: Robert, Graham and Christine. The family always lived in Liverpool and Jessie outlived Bob by sixteen years until she died in the early hours of 8 February 2012 as the result of a heart infection, aged 96.


Liverpool playing career

In the 1945–46 season, the Football League decided not to revive the championship programme as, with the war only recently concluded, many players were still in the forces and travel could still be difficult to arrange. Instead they organised Football League North, North and Football League South, South divisions on a geographical basis to keep travel to a minimum and enable clubs to re-establish themselves without the pressure of official competition. The FA Cup was staged but all ties up to the quarter-final stage were played over two legs to increase the number of meaningful matches in the season. Paisley eventually made his official debut on 5 January 1946 in Liverpool's first post-war competitive match, which was an FA Cup 3rd round, 1st leg away match at Sealand Road, the home ground of
Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...
. Liverpool won the game 2–0. Paisley's league debut would be against Chelsea F.C., Chelsea at Anfield on 7 September 1946, a game Liverpool would win 7-4. His first goal would come on 1 May 1948 in a League game at Anfield, against Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., Wolverhampton Wanderers. Paisley's 22nd-minute strike along with a Jack Balmer goal in the 80th were enough to help the Reds win 2–1. In the first full season after the war, 1946–47, he helped Liverpool to their first league title in 24 years, making 34 appearances in the 42-match season. He remained a fixture in the side, appearing in 30+ matches in 1947–48 and 1948–49 and 28 in 1949–50, a season of both highs and lows for Paisley who scored the opening goal of a 2–0 FA Cup semi-final win over Merseyside rivals Everton only to be dropped for the final against Arsenal F.C., Arsenal, the club's first appearance at Wembley Stadium (1923), Wembley. Paisley later said that the experience stood him in good stead when it came to telling players they were not going to play in big games as he knew how they felt. Paisley became club captain the following season.


Coaching career

After retiring in 1954, Paisley joined the Liverpool back room staff as a self-taught physiotherapist and was said to have the knack of being able to diagnose a player's injury just by looking at them. He later became the reserve team coach and then, in August 1959 when Albert Shelley retired, first team trainer.Kelly, p. 138. The arrival of Bill Shankly as manager in December 1959 transformed the fortunes of the club and Paisley recalled that "from the moment he arrived, we got on like a house on fire". On his first day in charge, Shankly held a meeting with the coaching staff which consisted of Paisley, Reuben Bennett and Joe Fagan to tell them that he was not bringing in his own coaches. He wanted to work with them and so guaranteed them their jobs. Shankly pointed out that he would decide the training strategy and they must all work together with absolutely loyalty to each other and to the club. Under Phil Taylor, training had been the traditional slog of physical exercise and road running. Shankly insisted on training which was "based on speed and using the ball". Five-a-side games were introduced as a key part of the strategy. Paisley had always been keen on training with the ball and was, like Fagan and Bennett, delighted to implement Shankly's methods.Kelly, p. 145. Fagan is credited with converting a storage area at Anfield into a "common room" for the coaches and it became the now-legendary The Boot Room, Boot Room. Shankly began a Liverpool tradition, later upheld by Paisley and Fagan, of holding daily meetings in there to discuss strategy, tactics, training and players. Training strategy was key to Liverpool's success in the 1960s and afterwards. There was more to it than using the ball and playing five-a-side matches. Influenced by Paisley, Fagan and Bennett, Shankly cottoned on to the importance of allowing players to cool down after training before having a bath or shower. Paisley, as a trained physiotherapist, argued that a person needs to cool down for about forty minutes after heavy exercise because, if they go into a bath while still sweating, their pores remain open and they are more susceptible to chills and strains. Fagan had advocated getting changed at Anfield before going via team bus to the club's training complex at Melwood. They would return to bath, change and eat. This routine satisfied the need for a cooling down period and had the added advantages of encouraging team bonding during the two journeys and ensuring familiarity with Anfield, an important need for them as home team. Everton, by contrast, did everything at their Bellefield training complex and their players only went to
Goodison Park Goodison Park is a Association football, football stadium in Walton, Liverpool, Walton, Liverpool, England, it was the home of Premier League club Everton F.C., Everton from 1892 until 2025. It is now the home of Everton F.C. (women), Everton's ...
for home matches every two weeks or so. Shankly claimed that the cooling down period resulted in "an astonishing lack of injuries over many seasons". For example, in 1965–66 when Liverpool won the league title and reached the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, European Cup Winners Cup final, they only used fourteen players in the entire season. Shankly's biographer Stephen F. Kelly describes Paisley as "the perfect number two: never a threat to Shankly but always offering wise counsel". Paisley was an unassuming character and "happy to play second fiddle", but Kelly recognises his influence because although Shankly was "the great motivating force behind Liverpool, it was Paisley who was the tactician". Under Shankly's management over the next fifteen years with Paisley as his assistant, Liverpool won three First Division league titles, one Second Division League title, two FA Cups and one UEFA Cup.


Liverpool manager

Following victory in the 1974 FA Cup final, Shankly unexpectedly announced his retirement; the Liverpool directors appointed Paisley as his replacement in the hope of maintaining continuity. Though initially reluctant to take on the role, Paisley became a huge success and, apart from his first season, won at least one major trophy in each of his nine years as manager. After finishing second in 1974–75, the team went on to win the league title and UEFA Cup in 1976. This period marked the beginning of Liverpool's dominance of English and European football, as the team went on to become champions on six occasions – finishing second twice – as well as winning three Football League Cup, League Cups, one UEFA Cup, one
UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup Association football, football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's offic ...
, six Charity Shields and, most significantly, three UEFA Champions League, European Cups. Apart from a fifth-place finish in 1981, Liverpool never finished lower than runners-up in the league with Paisley as manager. Between 1978 and 1981 Paisley's team went 63 league games unbeaten at Anfield, a club record until it was surpassed by Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool side in November 2020. Liverpool's dominance in England was primarily challenged by Nottingham Forest F.C., Nottingham Forest under Brian Clough, and Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa under Ron Saunders and Tony Barton (footballer), Tony Barton between 1977 and 1982. There were brief challenges from a number of other clubs, Ipswich Town F.C., Ipswich Town under Bobby Robson in seasons 1980–81 in English football, 1980–81 and 1981–82 in English football, 1981–82, Manchester City F.C., Manchester City under Tony Book in 1976–77 in English football, 1976–77, and Manchester United F.C., Manchester United under Tommy Docherty in 1975–76 in English football, 1975–76 and 1976–77. Paisley, having won 20 major honours in his time as Liverpool manager, remains, to this day, the most successful manager in the club's history and the most successful English manager of all time. He won honours at a rate of 2.2 per season, a rate surpassed only by Pep Guardiola. Paisley remained the only man in history to manage three European Cup winning sides until Carlo Ancelotti and Zinedine Zidane matched the feat in 2014 and 2018 respectively. He also won an unprecedented six Manager of the Year Awards. The only trophies that Paisley failed to win as manager were the FA Cup, although Liverpool would be runners-up in the 1977 FA Cup final, 1977 final, the European Cup Winners' Cup, and the Intercontinental Cup. Paisley was the subject of ''This Is Your Life (British TV series), This Is Your Life'' in 1977 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews on board a coach in central London. Following his death in 1996, Paisley was honoured by the club with the opening of the Paisley Gateway at one of the entrances to Anfield, complementing the existing Shankly Gates. In January 2020, a statue which depicts a scene from 1968, when Paisley carried the injured future Liverpool captain Emlyn Hughes off the field, was unveiled outside Anfield. The plinth features a quote from Paisley: "This Club has been my life; I'd go out and sweep the street and be proud to do it for Liverpool FC if they asked me to." The 8 ft sculpture was unveiled by some of Paisley's players, including Ian Rush, Sir Kenny Dalglish and Phil Thompson, with Liverpool chief executive Peter Moore (businessman), Peter Moore calling it a "fitting tribute to his legacy". Paisley also features in the popular Liverpool chant "Allez, Allez, Allez", which is frequently sung by Liverpool supporters, especially during European matches.


Retirement from Liverpool

Paisley retired as Liverpool manager at the end of the 1982–83 in English football, 1982–83 season, having spent 44 years at the club in various capacities. He was replaced by Joe Fagan, who would win Liverpool their fourth European Cup. Paisley worked informally as a consultant and advisor to Kenny Dalglish for two years after the latter's appointment as player-manager in 1985, before being appointed as a club director. In early 1986, then aged 66, he was interviewed by the Football Association of Ireland with a view to taking charge of the Republic of Ireland national football team, Ireland football team. Jack Charlton was eventually given the job instead. Paisley is honoured with the Paisley gates outside the Kop at Anfield and would later be honoured with statue with Emlyn Hughes Anfield.


Later years and death

Paisley continued to serve Liverpool as a director until he retired in early 1992 due to ill health, having been diagnosed with the early stages of
Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...
, something which had become apparent in his early seventies when he was unable to remember his way home when driving back from Anfield. He died on 14 February 1996 at the age of 77, several weeks after moving into a nursing home in Merseyside. Paisley was buried in the churchyard of St Peter's Church, Woolton, Liverpool, St Peter's Church in Woolton,
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
. A memorial to Paisley has been erected in the main park in his home town of Hetton-le-hole.


Personal life

Bob Paisley was married to his wife Jessie, a school teacher in
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
, from 1946 until his death 50 years later. They had two sons, Robert junior and Graham, and a daughter, Christine. Jessie Paisley died in February 2012 at the age of 96. Jessie Paisley had attended the celebrations to commemorate Liverpool's last game in front of the old Spion Kop terrace in 1994, but without her husband, who was not well enough to attend. Also in attendance that day were Paisley's successor Joe Fagan, and Agnes "Ness" Shankly, the widow of his predecessor Bill Shankly.


Honours


Player

Liverpool * Football League First Division: 1946–47 Football League, 1946–47


Manager

Liverpool * Football League First Division: 1975–76 Football League, 1975–76, 1976–77 Football League, 1976–77, 1978–79 Football League, 1978–79, 1979–80 Football League, 1979–80, 1981–82 Football League, 1981–82, 1982–83 Football League, 1982–83 * FA Cup runner-up: 1977 FA Cup final, 1976–77 * EFL Cup, League Cup: 1981 Football League Cup final, 1980–81, 1982 Football League Cup final, 1981–82, 1983 Football League Cup final, 1982–83; runner-up: 1978 Football League Cup final, 1977–78 * FA Community Shield, FA Charity Shield: 1974 FA Charity Shield, 1974, 1976 FA Charity Shield, 1976, 1977 FA Charity Shield, 1977, 1979 FA Charity Shield, 1979, 1980 FA Charity Shield, 1980, 1982 FA Charity Shield, 1982 * UEFA Champions League, European Cup: 1977 European Cup final, 1976–77, 1978 European Cup final, 1977–78, 1981 European Cup final, 1980–81 * UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup: 1976 UEFA Cup final, 1975–76 *
UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup Association football, football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's offic ...
: 1977 European Super Cup, 1977; runner-up: 1978 European Super Cup, 1978 * Intercontinental Cup (1960–2004), Intercontinental Cup runner-up: 1981 Intercontinental Cup, 1981 Individual * Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE): 1983 * PFA Merit Award: 1983 * FWA Tribute Award: 1984 * English Football Hall of Fame, English Football Hall of Fame (Manager): 2002 * LMA Manager of the Year, Football Manager of the Year Award: 1975–76 Football League, 1975–76, 1976–77 Football League, 1976–77, 1978–79 Football League, 1978–79, 1979–80 Football League, 1979–80, 1981–82 Football League, 1981–82, 1982–83 Football League, 1982–83 * ESPN 4th Greatest Manager of All Time: 2013 * World Soccer (magazine)#Greatest Managers of All Time, World Soccer 8th Greatest Manager of All Time: 2013 *France Football 26th Greatest Manager of All Time: 2019


Managerial statistics


See also

* List of European Cup and UEFA Champions League winning managers * List of UEFA Cup and Europa League winning managers * List of English football championship winning managers


References

;Specific ;General * * * * * * * * * * *


External links


Bob Paisley website

Profile
at the Liverpool F.C. website
Bob Paisley profile and related articles at LFC Online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paisley, Bob 1919 births 1996 deaths Men's association football wing halves Bishop Auckland F.C. players Bristol City F.C. wartime guest players British Army personnel of World War II English Football Hall of Fame inductees English football managers English men's footballers Liverpool F.C. managers Liverpool F.C. non-playing staff Liverpool F.C. players Officers of the Order of the British Empire Footballers from Hetton-le-Hole English Football League players UEFA Champions League–winning managers UEFA Europa League–winning managers Association football physiotherapists British physiotherapists Royal Artillery soldiers English football coaches 20th-century English sportsmen