# 1980–81 Liverpool F.C. season

The 1980–81 season was Liverpool Football Club's 89th season in existence and their 19th consecutive season in the First Division. It was a season of contrasts for Liverpool as they won the European Cup for the third time by defeating Real Madrid 1–0 in Paris, and winning the Football League Cup for the first time by defeating that season's Second Division champions West Ham United after a replay at Villa Park. They also beat West Ham in the Charity Shield.
The Football League season, however, turned out to be a big disappointment after successive titles in previous seasons, by only finishing fifth, and then losing to Everton in the Fourth Round of the FA Cup. It was to be the last season for a few players, and with Bob Paisley looking to the future bringing in players who would go on to feature regularly for the club for the rest of the decade and even the 1990s.

## Squad
### Goalkeepers

* Ray Clemence
* Steve Ogrizovic
* Bruce Grobbelaar

### Defenders

* Avi Cohen
* Colin Irwin
* Phil Neal
* Alan Hansen
* Phil Thompson
* Alan Kennedy
* Richard Money

### Midfielders

* Jimmy Case
* Steve Heighway
* Sammy Lee
* Ray Kennedy
* Terry McDermott
* Kevin Sheedy
* Graeme Souness
* Ronnie Whelan

### Forwards

* Kenny Dalglish
* Howard Gayle
* David Johnson
* Ian Rush
* Colin Russell

## Squad statistics
### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Division 1 | Division 1 | FA Cup | FA Cup | Charity Sheild | Charity Sheild | League Cup | League Cup | European Cup | European Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| | MF | ENG | Jimmy Case | 36 | 2 | 14+10 | 1 | 1+1 | 1 | 1+0 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 2+3 | 0 |
| | GK | ENG | Ray Clemence | 62 | 0 | 41+0 | 0 | 2+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 9+0 | 0 | 9+0 | 0 |
| | DF | ISR | Avi Cohen | 19 | 0 | 13+1 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 |
| | FW | SCO | Kenny Dalglish | 54 | 18 | 34+0 | 8 | 2+0 | 2 | 1+0 | 0 | 8+0 | 7 | 9+0 | 1 |
| | FW | ENG | David Fairclough | 16 | 7 | 6+3 | 4 | 1+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 3+1 | 1 | 2+0 | 2 |
| | FW | ENG | Howard Gayle | 5 | 1 | 3+1 | 1 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| | DF | SCO | Alan Hansen | 54 | 3 | 36+0 | 1 | 0+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 8+0 | 1 | 9+0 | 1 |
| | MF | IRL | Steve Heighway | 10 | 0 | 4+2 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 1+2 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Colin Irwin | 30 | 1 | 19+2 | 1 | 2+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 6+0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | David Johnson | 41 | 13 | 29+0 | 8 | 1+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 5+0 | 4 | 5+0 | 1 |
| | DF | ENG | Alan Kennedy | 33 | 4 | 19+0 | 2 | 1+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 6+0 | 1 | 6+0 | 1 |
| | MF | ENG | Ray Kennedy | 62 | 13 | 41+0 | 8 | 2+0 | 1 | 1+0 | 0 | 9+0 | 2 | 9+0 | 2 |
| | MF | ENG | Sammy Lee | 55 | 8 | 37+0 | 4 | 2+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 7+0 | 2 | 9+0 | 2 |
| | MF | ENG | Terry McDermott | 60 | 22 | 40+0 | 13 | 2+0 | 1 | 1+0 | 1 | 9+0 | 1 | 8+0 | 6 |
| | DF | ENG | Richard Money | 17 | 0 | 12+2 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Phil Neal | 63 | 3 | 42+0 | 2 | 2+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 9+0 | 0 | 9+0 | 1 |
| | GK | ENG | Steve Ogrizovic | 1 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 |
| | FW | WAL | Ian Rush | 9 | 0 | 7+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Colin Russell | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 |
| | MF | IRL | Kevin Sheedy | 1 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 |
| | MF | SCO | Graeme Souness | 55 | 13 | 37+0 | 6 | 1+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 8+0 | 1 | 8+0 | 6 |
| | DF | ENG | Phil Thompson | 40 | 0 | 25+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 6+0 | 0 | 7+0 | 0 |
| | MF | IRL | Ronnie Whelan | 1 | 1 | 1+0 | 1 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 | 0+0 | 0 |

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 3 | Arsenal | 42 | 19 | 15 | 8 | 61 | 45 | +16 | 53 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 4 | West Bromwich Albion | 42 | 20 | 12 | 10 | 60 | 42 | +18 | 52 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 5 | Liverpool | 42 | 17 | 17 | 8 | 62 | 42 | +20 | 51 | Qualification for the European Cup first round |
| 6 | Southampton | 42 | 20 | 10 | 12 | 76 | 56 | +20 | 50 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 7 | Nottingham Forest | 42 | 19 | 12 | 11 | 62 | 44 | +18 | 50 | |
* ↑ Liverpool qualified for the European Cup first round as the 1980–81 European Cup winners.

## Results
### First Division

| Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance | Report 1 | Report 2 |
| 16-Aug-80 | Crystal Palace | H | 3–0 | Dalglish 25', R. Kennedy 32', A. Kennedy 83' | 42,777 | Report | Report |
| 19-Aug-80 | Coventry City | A | 0–0 | | 22,807 | Report | Report |
| 23-Aug-80 | Leicester City | A | 0–2 | | 28,455 | Report | Report |
| 30-Aug-80 | Norwich City | H | 4–1 | Hansen 44', McDermott 65', A. Kennedy 72', Johnson 87' | 35,315 | Report | Report |
| 06-Sep-80 | Birmingham City | A | 1–1 | Dalglish 49' | 27,042 | Report | Report |
| 13-Sep-80 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 4–0 | McDermott 27' (pen.), Souness 44', Fairclough (2) 67', 71' | 36,792 | Report | Report |
| 20-Sep-80 | Southampton | A | 2–2 | Souness 8', Fairclough 56' | 24,085 | Report | Report |
| 27-Sep-80 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | 4–1 | Souness (2) 37', 57', McDermott 56' (pen.), Fairclough 83' | 35,836 | Report | Report |
| 04-Oct-80 | Manchester City | A | 3–0 | Dalglish 38', Souness 52', Lee 83' | 41,022 | Report | Report |
| 07-Oct-80 | Middlesbrough | H | 4–2 | McDermott (2) 1', 79' (pen.), R. Kennedy 61', Dalglish 86' | 28,204 | Report | Report |
| 11-Oct-80 | Ipswich Town | H | 1–1 | McDermott 39' (pen.) | 48,084 | Report | Report |
| 18-Oct-80 | Everton | A | 2–2 | Lee 23', Dalglish 56' | 52,565 | Report | Report |
| 25-Oct-80 | Arsenal | H | 1–1 | Souness 48' | 40,310 | Report | Report |
| 01-Nov-80 | Stoke City | A | 2–2 | Johnson 24', Dalglish 79' | 22,864 | Report | Report |
| 08-Nov-80 | Nottingham Forest | H | 0–0 | | 43,143 | Report | Report |
| 11-Nov-80 | Coventry City | H | 2–1 | Johnson (2) 28', 80' | 26,744 | Report | Report |
| 15-Nov-80 | Crystal Palace | A | 2–2 | R. Kennedy 45', McDermott 77' | 31,154 | Report | Report |
| 22-Nov-80 | Aston Villa | H | 2–1 | Dalglish 66', 88' | 48,114 | Report | Report |
| 25-Nov-80 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 1–4 | Neal 44' | 25,497 | Report | Report |
| 29-Nov-80 | Sunderland | A | 4–2 | Johnson 14', McDermott 35', Lee (2) 82', 84' | 32,340 | Report | Report |
| 06-Dec-80 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 2–1 | Johnson 19', R. Kennedy 59' | 39,545 | Report | Report |
| 13-Dec-80 | Ipswich Town | A | 1–1 | Case 61' | 32,274 | Report | Report |
| 20-Dec-80 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 1–0 | R. Kennedy 33' | 33,563 | Report | Report |
| 26-Dec-80 | Manchester United | A | 0–0 | | 57,073 | Report | Report |
| 27-Dec-80 | Leeds United | H | 0–0 | | 44,086 | Report | Report |
| 10-Jan-81 | Aston Villa | A | 0–2 | | 47,960 | Report | Report |
| 17-Jan-81 | Norwich City | A | 1–0 | McDermott 23' | 23,829 | Report | Report |
| 31-Jan-81 | Leicester City | H | 1–2 | Young o.g. 15' | 35,154 | Report | Report |
| 07-Feb-81 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 0–2 | | 27,905 | Report | Report |
| 14-Feb-81 | Birmingham City | H | 2–2 | Johnson 25', Neal 33' | 32,199 | Report | Report |
| 21-Feb-81 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | 2–2 | Johnson 27', McDermott 65' | 23,275 | Report | Report |
| 28-Feb-81 | Southampton | H | 2–0 | R. Kennedy 13', McDermott 60' | 41,575 | Report | Report |
| 21-Mar-81 | Everton | H | 1–0 | Bailey o.g. 77' | 49,743 | Report | Report |
| 28-Mar-81 | Arsenal | A | 0–1 | | 47,058 | Report | Report |
| 03-Apr-81 | Stoke City | H | 3–0 | Whelan 27', McDermott (2) 52', 81' | 33,308 | Report | Report |
| 11-Apr-81 | Nottingham Forest | A | 0–0 | | 27,363 | Report | Report |
| 14-Apr-81 | Manchester United | H | 0–1 | | 31,276 | Report | Report |
| 18-Apr-81 | Leeds United | A | 0–0 | | 39,206 | Report | Report |
| 25-Apr-81 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1–1 | Gayle 25' | 35,334 | Report | Report |
| 02-May-81 | Sunderland | H | 0–1 | | 40,337 | Report | Report |
| 05-May-81 | Middlesbrough | A | 2–1 | R. Kennedy 7', Irwin 28' | 19,102 | Report | Report |
| 19-May-81 | Manchester City | H | 1–0 | R. Kennedy 16' | 24,462 | Report | Report |

### FA Charity Shield

| Liverpool | West Ham United |
Liverpool: :
| GK | 1 | Ray Clemence |
| DF | 2 | Phil Neal |
| DF | 3 | Alan Kennedy |
| DF | 4 | Phil Thompson (c) |
| MF | 5 | Ray Kennedy |
| DF | 6 | Alan Hansen |
| FW | 7 | Kenny Dalglish |
| MF | 8 | Jimmy Case |
| FW | 9 | David Johnson |
| MF | 10 | Terry McDermott |
| MF | 11 | Graeme Souness |
| Manager: ||||
| Bob Paisley ||||
West Ham United :
| GK | 1 | Phil Parkes |
| DF | 2 | Ray Stewart |
| DF | 3 | Paul Brush |
| DF | 4 | Billy Bonds |
| DF | 5 | Alvin Martin |
| MF | 6 | Alan Devonshire |
| MF | 7 | Paul Allen |
| FW | 8 | Pat Holland |
| FW | 9 | David Cross |
| FW | 10 | Trevor Brooking |
| MF | 11 | Geoff Pike |
| Substitutes: ||||
| FW | 12 | Nicky Morgan |
| Manager: ||||
| John Lyall ||||
* Match rules
* 90 minutes, no extra time
* Five named substitutes
* Maximum of three substitutions

### FA Cup

| Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance | Report 1 | Report 2 |
| 03-Jan-81 | Altrincham | H | 4–1 | McDermott 27', Dalglish (2) 39', 54', R. Kennedy 88' | 37,170 | Report | Report |
| 24-Jan-81 | Everton | A | 1–2 | Case 76' | 53,804 | Report | Report |

### League Cup

| Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance | Report 1 | Report 2 |
| 27-Aug-80 | Bradford City | A | 0–1 | | 16,232. | Report | Report |
| 02-Sep-80 | Bradford City | H | 4–0 | Dalglish (2) 9', 36', R. Kennedy 34', Johnson 59' | 22,807 | Report | Report |
| 23-Sep-80 | Swindon Town | H | 5–0 | Lee (2) 7', 85', Dalglish 17', Cockerill o.g. 75', Fairclough 80' | 28,455 | Report | Report |
| 28-Oct-80 | Portsmouth | H | 4–1 | Dalglish 22', Johnson (2) 39', 80', Souness 85' | 35,836 | Report | Report |
| 02-Dec-80 | Birmingham City | H | 3–1 | Dalglish 23', McDermott 66', Johnson 85' | 35,315 | Report | Report |
| 14-Jan-81 | Manchester City | A | 1–0 | R. Kennedy 81' | 27,042 | Report | Report |
| 10-Feb-81 | Manchester City | H | 1–1 | Dalglish 23' | 36,792 | Report | Report |
League Cup final
| Liverpool | West Ham United |
Ray Clemence :
| | 2 | Phil Neal (c) |
| | 3 | Alan Kennedy |
| | 4 | Colin Irwin |
| | 5 | Ray Kennedy |
| | 6 | Alan Hansen |
| | 7 | Kenny Dalglish |
| | 8 | Sammy Lee |
| | 9 | Steve Heighway |
| | 10 | Terry McDermott |
| | 11 | Graeme Souness |
| Substitute: ||||
| | 12 | Jimmy Case |
| Manager: ||||
| Bob Paisley ||||
Phil Parkes :
| | 2 | Ray Stewart |
| | 3 | Frank Lampard Sr. |
| | 4 | Billy Bonds (c) |
| | 5 | Alvin Martin |
| | 6 | Alan Devonshire |
| | 7 | Jimmy Neighbour |
| | 8 | Paul Goddard |
| | 9 | David Cross |
| | 10 | Trevor Brooking |
| | 11 | Geoff Pike |
| Substitute: ||||
| | 12 | Stuart Pearson |
| Manager: ||||
| John Lyall ||||
League Cup final replay
| Liverpool | West Ham United |
Ray Clemence :
| | 2 | Phil Neal |
| | 3 | Alan Kennedy |
| | 4 | Phil Thompson (c) |
| | 5 | Ray Kennedy |
| | 6 | Alan Hansen |
| | 7 | Kenny Dalglish |
| | 8 | Sammy Lee |
| | 9 | Ian Rush |
| | 10 | Terry McDermott |
| | 11 | Jimmy Case |
| Substitute: ||||
| | 12 | Colin Irwin |
| Manager: ||||
| Bob Paisley ||||
Phil Parkes :
| | 2 | Ray Stewart |
| | 3 | Frank Lampard Sr. |
| | 4 | Billy Bonds (c) |
| | 5 | Alvin Martin |
| | 6 | Alan Devonshire |
| | 7 | Jimmy Neighbour |
| | 8 | Paul Goddard |
| | 9 | David Cross |
| | 10 | Trevor Brooking |
| | 11 | Geoff Pike |
| Substitute: ||||
| | 12 | Stuart Pearson |
| Manager: ||||
| John Lyall ||||

### European Cup

| Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance | Report 1 | Report 2 |
| 17-Sep-80 | Oulu Palloseura | A | 1–1 | McDermott 15' | 14,000 | Report | Report |
| 01-Oct-80 | Oulu Palloseura | H | 10–1 | Souness (3) 5', 24', 52' (pen.), McDermott (3) 15', 41', 83', Lee 53', R. Kennedy 66', Fairclough (2) 68', 81' | 21,013 | Report | Report |
| 22-Oct-80 | Aberdeen | A | 1–0 | McDermott 5' | 24,000 | Report | Report |
| 05-Nov-80 | Aberdeen | H | 4–0 | Miller o.g. 37', Neal 43', Dalglish 58', Hansen 71' | 36,182 | Report | Report |
| 04-Mar-81 | CSKA Sofia | H | 5–1 | Souness (3) 16', 51', 80', Lee 45', McDermott 62' | 37,255 | Report | Report |
| 18-Mar-81 | CSKA Sofia | A | 1–0 | Johnson 10' | 65,000 | Report | Report |
| 08-Apr-81 | Bayern Munich | H | 0–0 | | 44,543 | Report | Report |
| 22-Apr-81 | Bayern Munich | A | 1–1 | R. Kennedy 83' | 77,600 | Report | Report |
European Cup final
| Liverpool | Real Madrid |
Ray Clemence :
| RB | 2 | Phil Neal |
| LB | 3 | Alan Kennedy |
| CB | 4 | Phil Thompson (c) |
| LM | 5 | Ray Kennedy | 29' |
| CB | 6 | Alan Hansen |
| CF | 7 | Kenny Dalglish | | 85' |
| RM | 8 | Sammy Lee |
| CF | 9 | David Johnson |
| CM | 10 | Terry McDermott |
| CM | 11 | Graeme Souness |
| Substitutes: |||
| MF | 12 | Jimmy Case | | 85' |
| GK | 13 | Steve Ogrizovic |
| DF | 14 | Colin Irwin |
| DF | 15 | Richard Money |
| FW | 16 | Howard Gayle |
| Manager: |||
| Bob Paisley ||||
Agustín Rodríguez :
| DF | 2 | Rafael García Cortés | | 87' |
| DF | 3 | José Antonio Camacho |
| MF | 4 | Uli Stielike | 59' |
| DF | 5 | Andrés Sabido |
| MF | 6 | Vicente del Bosque |
| FW | 7 | Juanito |
| MF | 8 | Ángel de los Santos |
| FW | 9 | Santillana (c) |
| DF | 10 | Antonio García Navajas |
| FW | 11 | Laurie Cunningham |
| Substitutes: |||
| GK | | Miguel Ángel González |
| DF | | Isidoro San José |
| MF | | Ángel |
| MF | | García Hernández |
| MF | 16 | Francisco Pineda | | 87' |
| Manager: |||
| Vujadin Boškov ||||