Robbie Fowler left Liverpool for Leeds in an £11m deal in 2001 before returning five years later

Sitting at Elland Road in November 2001, speaking to the press for the first time since his surprise move from Liverpool for £11m, Robbie Fowler cut an uncharacteristically withdrawn figure.

He had become known as ‘God’ to his adoring support on the Kop following his heroics at Anfield during which he had scored 171 goals in 330 appearances.

He began his career, famously, scoring five against Fulham in the League Cup in September 1993 and would go on to score 13 goals in 12 appearances during what still registers as one of the most incredible starts to a top-flight career in history.

Eight years later he would score what appeared to be his final goals for Liverpool as part of a trademark hat-trick in a 4-1 defeat of Leicester City in October 2001.

Goals have a habit of endearing a player to any set of supporters, however, it would not be wide of the mark to contend that what set the Toxteth-native apart from his contemporaries was his typically Scouse lack of pretensions; his mischievous nature belying an unassuming and refreshingly humble character, who seemed to transcend his superstar-status.

In short, what was so atypical when it came to Fowler was that, remarkably for a player of such inalienable talent, he seemed so akin to those fans who would pack out the terraces at Anfield every week to cheer him and his team-mates to victory.

However, after three seasons of unsurmountable genius in front of goal, in which he had risen to become recognised as one of the most talented forwards of his generation by scoring over 30 goals in each campaign – a record that has never been matched before or since – injuries would begin to take their toll.

Fowler would never again reach the heights of his incredible first three campaigns at Anfield and, in his absence, a young Michael Owen would establish himself as Liverpool’s first-choice attacker; something that would have been unfathomable at Fowler’s height only a matter of years previously.

And in 1998, the appointment of Gerard Houllier as Liverpool manager would, in retrospect, be the beginning of the end for Fowler’s time at Anfield that would end in the ‘Toxteth Terror’ departing Merseyside with a whimper; substituted at half-time against Sunderland during the final appearance of his first spell at Anfield in November 2001.

 

 

 

It would be a slow and painful demise, not befitting of a player who had provided the adoring Kop with such splendour during the previous regime under Roy Evans.

Albeit, Fowler’s descent would come at a time of plentiful silverware for Houllier’s side, including an unprecedented cup treble in the 2000-01 season, in which he would play an inalienable part- scoring against both Birmingham City in the League Cup final and Alaves in the UEFA Cup final, on the way to victory.

Despite the success, Fowler would continue to sink further down the pecking order and would, by the end of his spell on Merseyside, end up behind the aforementioned Owen, as well as Emile Heskey and Jari Litmanen in the Frenchman’s thoughts.

And so, for a player still recognised as, perhaps, England’s most natural goalscorer, a change beckoned.

For any other player in Fowler’s predicament, a parting of ways may have been for the best. That said, seeing a man so revered by the Anfield faithful sold to an outright rival just didn’t sit right.

As Fowler sat next to his new manager David O’Leary in November 2001, his face seemed to represent the same feelings of resignation and shock as Reds supporters will have been feeling at home following the news of his departure.

Indeed, Liverpool fans were up in arms about seeing their favourite son depart, but Houllier’s success offset their anger and most Reds accepted the decision.

At the time, Leeds had ambitions of being a Champions League and Premier League contender, and the spending power to match. But unfortunately for Fowler, things didn’t quite work out in Yorkshire.

Fowler’s spell at Leeds would certainly not be seen as a failure. He would score a wholly respectable 14 goals in 33 appearances. However, the club he joined would go on to be beset with financial problems and he would be on the move again within 18 months, joining Kevin Keegan’s Manchester City in January 2003 as the Yorkshire outfit’s financial woes spiralled out of control.

Frankly, regardless of how he fared at Leeds and Manchester City, it never did feel right.

In September 2005, the ‘Toxteth Terror’ would give some alarmingly nostalgic interviews with the Guardian upon the release of his first autobiography, in which he looked back regretfully on what might have been. It seemed, not for the first time, that this was a feeling he shared with the Anfield faithful.

Then nearly 30, Fowler was beginning to look back on his days at Liverpool as what appeared to be a closed chapter in his life.

“Obviously, deep down, I was thinking maybe it could have been me lifting the trophy, I could have been there on the pitch, but I never moped about it,” he said after Liverpool won their fifth European Cup in Istanbul.

“I don’t want to say in an ideal world – because that would be disrespectful to Leeds and Manchester City – but I do wonder what might have happened [if he had stayed at Liverpool]. If things had been going according to my plan, I would still be there.”

Like Fowler, it felt as though, a legend though he was at Anfield, the man the Kop knew as ‘God’ had moved on and, following the club’s Champions League success in 2005, they were moving on without him.

The optimism following a triumphant European Cup winning campaign is only to be expected and Liverpool had began the 2005/06 season looking to add more silverware to their coffers.

However, struggling for goals following the additions of Peter Crouch and Fernando Morientes to mixed success, and options for reinforcements as limited as you would typically find during the January window, manager Rafa Benitez was in search for a forward who could supply the goals his side were sorely missing as the Spaniard planned the first assault on the league title of his reign.

What would happen next would go down as one of the most surprising, but undeniably heartwarming transfers in Liverpool’s recent history.

Because in early 2006, ‘God’ would complete his second coming.

Out of nowhere, the former Valencia coach would plump for a player who was out of favour under Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce, behind a veteran Andy Cole and Darius Vassell in the manager’s thoughts.

In truth, the re-signing of Fowler was never going to be a long-term fix for Liverpool.

That said, in terms of re-energising a squad that was struggling to keep up with its domestic challengers in the quest for an elusive 19th league title, the recruitment of Anfield’s deity was always going to prove a masterstroke.

Fowler’s knack for articulating what his adoring Reds fans were thinking would again be repeated, with the Anfield favourite, comparing his mood to being like “a kid on Christmas morning”.

“Since I have left, deep down I have always wanted to come back and it has been a long time but I’m glad to say I’m back now,” said Fowler.

“Leaving was probably one of my biggest regrets I have had in football.

“I’m chuffed to bits. I mean, I can’t really believe it’s happened again so I’m ecstatic to be honest.”

In January 2006, Fowler would reveal his regrets regarding his departure under Gerard Houllier in 2001.

“One of my biggest regrets in football is that, in my last match before I left, I was taken off at half-time against Sunderland and never really had a chance to say goodbye,” he said.

In truth, his first departure never felt right. Thankfully, on May 13, 2007, Anfield had a chance to address the underwhelming manner in which he departed Merseyside first time around.

Fowler played 88 minutes of the final league match of the season against Charlton Athletic and left the field to rapturous applause.

It was a fairytale end to return befitting of the Kop’s prodigal son.

God’s second coming may not have been as glorious as his first – he would score 12 goals in 39 appearances – but that mattered little.

For a man who seemed so lost away from Merseyside, bringing him home was a masterstroke that nobody saw coming but immediately felt right.

*A version of this piece was first published in November 2019