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The Phoenix Chris Kirkland: The pain of relegation, the inside story of his Liverpool move and how Bellamy was put in his place

When The Sky Was Blue

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Hi all,

I spoke to Chris Kirkland for The Phoenix about his time at Coventry and there were some really interesting stories.

He talks about how much the 2001 relegation still hurts, the influence Oggy and Jim Blyth had on his career, why he thinks signing John Hartson earlier might have kept us up and what Craig Bellamy was like inside that Coventry dressing room.

Something I found really interesting was that while he made his debut and then established himself as a first teamer player while still a teenager, he hadn't actually played in goal until he was nearly 14! Not bad progress.

He also told the story of how his record-breaking move to Liverpool came about - and the role of Gary McAllister.

‘When he went to Liverpool, I think Macca was probably a big reason why I went to Liverpool because he was ringing me every now and again saying, “Listen, they’re going to sign you. Don’t sign for anyone else.”

‘He probably shouldn’t have done that! But it happens all the time. People say it doesn’t – rubbish. It happens all the time. He was ringing me saying, “Listen, they’re going to bid for you. They’re going to bid for you in the next window.”’

If you fancy reading the whole thing take a look over on The Phoenix. You can find it here: Chris Kirkland: The pain of relegation, the inside story of his Liverpool move and how Bellamy was put in his place
 
Still £4.99 a month.

Should I wish to cancel Apple TV I may take a look.
 
Its a pity you have to pay but I'm a tight git but appreciate its your time
 
I don't have anyone on blocked here, but I might block @When The Sky Was Blue and if he wants to read my ramblings on here, then he can pay me for them. Over 20,000 nuggets of gold that you currently all get from me for free :)
 
I don't have anyone on blocked here, but I might block @When The Sky Was Blue and if he wants to read my ramblings on here, then he can pay me for them. Over 20,000 nuggets of gold that you currently all get from me for free :)
Get them behind the paywall at a pound a pop. Earn yourself £20,000 - that would've bought you two Peter Ndlovus back in 1991.
 
I agree re: Hartson - Weren't we pissing about over 500k? which we ended up paying anyway?

in retrospect, that 500k has cost us a hell of a lot more over the next 25 years
Nah it would have happened eventually after stinking the place out for a bit longer.

I genuinely wouldn't change a thing now we're back. SISU, the ground stuff, our struggles on and off the pitch, relegations, Wasps, L2, all of it. At the time it was horrible and I wondered if I'd even have a club to support, but I think all those of us who have been through it, makes the good times appreciated more and why our togetherness and spirit makes our journey totally unique.
 
I agree re: Hartson - Weren't we pissing about over 500k? which we ended up paying anyway?

in retrospect, that 500k has cost us a hell of a lot more over the next 25 years
Should have just paid the money straight away. We looked a completely different team with Hartson - even Bellamy looked half decent (steady on).
 
Nah it would have happened eventually after stinking the place out for a bit longer.

I genuinely wouldn't change a thing now we're back. SISU, the ground stuff, our struggles on and off the pitch, relegations, Wasps, L2, all of it. At the time it was horrible and I wondered if I'd even have a club to support, but I think all those of us who have been through it, makes the good times appreciated more and why our togetherness and spirit makes our journey totally unique.
I certainly wouldn't swap our journey. We were starved of a winning team for so long so having one for those seasons on the rise back up was incredible. It didn't matter that it was at a lower level. For me, that feeling of winning a game is the same at League Two level than Premier League. I couldn't have enjoyed the promotions any more even if they were Champions League wins.
 
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