Originalkalendern – Robbies målfest.
Alternativa kalendern – Robbies målgest.

Well, den här kunde ni ana att den skulle komma. Förmodligen känner ni även till bakgrundshistorien, hur ryktena gick i Liverpool om att Fowler gick på knark, hur Everton-fansen därför skanderade ”smackhead” åt honom och hur han därför låtsades sniffa sidlinjen efter att ha gjort mål framför dem i derbyt.

Men följde ni med i vad som hände sedan? Enligt Robbie Fowler själv var den här dagen början på slutet på hans Liverpool-karriär. Ett egendomligt bråk bröt ut med tränaren Gérard Houllier, och enligt honom själv blev han aldrig förlåten. Här är Fowlers egna ord om efterspelet, från hans självbiografi:

I´d scored twice and we´d beaten the enemy 3-2, som Houllier was pretty happy because it was something positive in a difficult season, although he did ask me, just before he went to do the press conference, how the hell he was going to explain that one to the waiting media.

I could tell him exactly how not to do it – make up the fucking fantasy he eventually came up with! He went into the tiny press room at Anfield, and he came out with this incredible stuff about ”eating the grass”. Apparently, Rigobert Song had brought this celebration with him from Africa. It was common over there in Cameroon, the players would get down and eat the grass after they scored, and I had seen him do it in training. It was, Houllier said with a completely straight face, my tribute to Rigobert.

I spoke to one or two of the press lads later, and they told me they had to stuff their fists in their mouths to stop themselves laughing out loud. People had tears in their eyes because it was so funny. Nobody could ask another question because they had to run outside and break down in gales of laughter. And Houllier stood through it all blinking, without a flicker of a smile. He thought it had been a fantastic excuse.

Of course, the papers mullered him. They really went to town on how ridicoulous his explanation had been, and what a fool he had made of himself. Houllier was hurt by the criticism he recieved, and he blamed me. Really blamed me. It must have been fully two years later when he told a mate of mine how I was finished that day, when he had been ridiculed for defending me.

Houllier had rung this guy, a journalist, to give him a volley about criticism of Emile Heskey. He knew the reporter had contact with me and was a supporter of mine, and he laid into him, saying he was just slagging Emile off to get me in the team. Then he referred back to the ”eating the grass”-incident, and he let rip:
– I tried to defend your mate, I tried to fucking defend the idiot and what did you do? You ridiculed me. I was made to look ridicoulous because of Fowler, and I defended him. I tell you, I will never make that mistake again. You tried to destroy me reputation, because I was loyal to your mate. Don´t think I will ever forget that.

/Erik Niva