In the late 1980s, English football was far from what we see it as now. It wasn’t the shining giant. It wasn’t the magnet for the best players and the biggest money. There was no Premier League yet, but there were disasters at Heysel and Hillsborough. There was hooliganism. Football was going from being the nation’s favourite child to being a despicable outcast. England itself became an outcast when its clubs were banned from European competitions for several years. English football was shrouded in a depressing atmosphere.
