Interviews My Team - September 2000 - Guardian Unlimited Online

Tommy Scott

My dad was an Evertonian, so I used to be taken to Everton matches when I was a kid - though I've managed to blot them all out of my memory. I can't ever remember supporting Everton though. I think my supporting Liverpool was a 'going against your parents' type thing - that and the fact that most of my mates were Liverpool supporters. I must have been about five when it began.

All my life I've wanted to be a footballer. I'd far rather be a footballer than a pop star. It's not a glamour thing - we've certainly got some glamour in what we do - it's just that I love playing football. We always take a ball with us on the road and we're always having a kickabout. The ball's always there. When I get time off I always join a Sunday league team, just to be able to play.

One of my earliest memories was Liverpool winning about 8-1. Kevin Keegan was playing and I was in the Kop and I thought, this is the team for me. Mind you, it was easy then, 'cos we were winning everything. We were like Manchester United now, we thought it would never end.

Keegan was in that team and he's remained my favourite Liverpool player of them all. I just loved the way he never gave up. He was always practising. He said himself he wasn't the best technical player in the world, but he just practised and practised.

We're nowhere near as good as that now, of course, but I think the current side is a decent one. We still need a few players though. We started to fade at the end of last season, and I never expected that. I thought we'd easily get into the Champions League. But we started messing up. Last season was up and down: we were rubbish when we first started, I enjoyed the middle and towards the end, then I hated the last bit.

But overall I think Gerard Houllier has done really well. I never expected him to. When he arrived I was totally sceptical about him. Roy Evans was a Liverpool lad, and you just thought he was going to do great, and then all of a sudden he didn't work out. But I think Houllier's done good things. He's bought a lot of foreign players, but he's also bought Emile Heskey and brought on young Stephen Gerrard, who's absolutely brilliant.

My fantasy signing would be David Beckham, though obviously it'll never happen. But even without him I think we'll do well this season. I don't think we'll win the league yet, that'll take a while. Man United have got a great youth policy and they can still afford to buy brilliant players. For me success this season would be to make it into the Champions League. And maybe the FA Cup - that would be cool. I know people maybe don't rate it so much, especially not since Man United pulled out last year - but it's still great isn't it? And we've got a great tradition in it.

Original Article available here
Source: Guardian Unlimited Online