John Barnes vs Everton (H) 1987/1988

Thanks for the RT goat

I rate this version of Barnes over Salah or Mane.

Better than Mané for sure but not fully confident of saying that for Salah. Problem being that Barnes couldn’t produce the numbers Salah was putting up in 17/18 or 24/25

That’s true but I think there’s more to football than just G/A it’s also about general play on the pitch for which Barnes has Salah beat by considerable margin.

True and the fact that Barnes never played in Europe harms his stats (not enough games), playing as a LM in a 4-4-2 so isn't a left footed RW like Salah which would've seen his output increase considerably & also not the main pen taker too. I would choose peak Barnes but close

Playing LM did limit (Dalglish also played a 4231) his attacking output but Barnes was extremely bipedal (another reason why I have him above Salah), which is why it never seemed to matter match.

Yes his cutting inside and finishing it top right on his weaker right foot because like a signature move from him as he could go both ways. But he said himself that playing on the left meant he had put more crosses in and didn’t have the freedom like Salah does

Yeah that is true, he was a victim of the football meta of the time in that sense. Inverted wingers weren’t the norm during his heyday.

Chris Waddle tbf

A Rolls Royce on legs.

As a footballer Barnes was far superior then Salah, higher football IQ, goals wise Salah yes, artistic impression, smoothness and all round game John Barnes all day.

My favourite player. As a 7 year old watching Barnes in the family enclosure Annie road. I just adored him. He was world class. Only Maradona at the time for those 2-3 years

Here is the match in full, for those who want to relive the 90 minutes of that game 🤩

Best player I’ve watched in a red shirt

The whole of the Everton right side had to work together to try to stop him - incredible

@TaintlessRed John Barnes 87/88 best player I’ve seen in a red shirt.

Big fan of your comps 👍 Btw just wondering of you don't mind to doing Jermaine Pennant vs AC Milan 2007 compilation someday? I watched that final when I was 10 but the only thing I can remember he's the one that standout for Liverpool on that night. Totally fine if not

I was there at this game. And most of the 80s home and away. John was quality. One of our best ever. We knew at Anfield we were winning. The confidence was sky high.

Top Tier footballer

My idol. Like many I suppose. Look at Beardsley in that clip as well😮‍💨. Unbelievable first touch in tougher conditions and centre backs going right through you. Both would be class nowa days

Still imo the greatest to ever throw on the red shirt.

Why am I watching this with a huge SMILE on my face? That’s Barnesy in a nutshell

Walks into any Liverpool team, in any era. One of our all time greats and my favourite player

Rival fans and most LFC fans still need to deep how good these Liverpool were in the late 70s all the way to 1990. Absolute domestic and European dominance when possible.

One of the best players in the world during that time at Liverpool.

I was there

Barnes was a top top Quality player. Can you do one for Beardsley next?

I will do some Beardsley ones at one point but not anytime soon, atm I’ve done Dalglish, Souness, Hansen, Barnes and currently doing Keegan ones

Barry Davies' simple yet effective commentary for the first goal just added to its brilliance

What a hit that was from Beardsley

@AbhayNainani

I love these videos,what a player he was

As a kid at the time loved John Barnes. What a player! Always wanted him to play for my team but as my team is Posh was never gonna happen!

Don't know if it's just me but I seemed to detect a good few monkey grunts in the first few highlights of that clip. (Well aware he was a target at that time) I was only around 2 then but he's my favourite ex-player to watch.

One of pools greatest players, even on a off day he was good, not many players you can say that about, he made the game look easy.

What....a....player. Genius.

Beardsley goal here was just a delight

Barnes aerial ability was always overlooked, probably because he was so good on the ground. Quite obvious from these highlights how good he was on that front.

@officialbarnesy Yep I agree with you on this one