The 1986-87 campaign has always felt like the forgotten season amongst Liverpool’s years of dominance. It’s one of only two seasons in fifteen without a major trophy win, and lacks the seismic events of the other, 1984-85. It was very much a transitional season, sandwiched between Kenny Dalglish’s dramatic first year as manager, and the attacking signings of the following summer that most defined his first spell. Many Liverpool players of the early 80s had made been pensioned off – Sammy Lee left for QPR, following Alan Kennedy and Phil Neal the previous season, and this season saw many mid-80s players fade as well, with players such as MacDonald, John Wark and Paul Walsh making way for various reasons. In came new players such as Gary Ablett, Venison and Aldridge, the latter a pre-emptive replacement for Ian Rush, who left – temporarily, as it turned out – at the end of the season. Perhaps most significantly, it represented Dalglish’s last season as a regular squad remember – he remained in the team until 1989-90, but would only make fleeting appearances after this season.