1986 FA Cup Final

1986 FA Cup Final
Event 1985–86 FA Cup
Date 10 May 1986
Venue Wembley Stadium, London
1985
1987

The 1986 FA Cup Final was a Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton at Wembley. The match was played seven days after Liverpool had secured the league title, with Everton finishing as runners-up. Liverpool went on to win this match 3–1, with two goals from Ian Rush, and one from Craig Johnston after Gary Lineker had put Everton ahead in the first half.

This match is notable in that it was the first FA Cup Final to feature a team without any English footballers in the starting lineup. Even the Cardiff FA Cup sides of 1925 and 1927 had an English player, Billy Hardy. However, Liverpool did name an English player as substitute, Steve McMahon (who did not come on in the game), and did start with English-born Mark Lawrenson – who had opted to play for the Republic of Ireland due to his ancestry.

Liverpool had already won the First Division title, and so completed the double. Everton had also finished as runners-up to Liverpool in the league. However, the ban on English clubs in European competitions imposed after the previous season's Heysel disaster remained in force, meaning that Everton were unable to compete in the 1986–87 European Cup Winners' Cup (Liverpool as league champions would have gone into the European Cup).

Notable changes to the Everton side who had been runners-up in the final a year earlier were the absence of goalkeeper Neville Southall due to injury (his place in the team being taken by Bobby Mimms) and new signing Gary Lineker playing in the forward position which had previously been occupied by Andy Gray.

Liverpool, on the other hand, were competing in their first FA Cup final for 9 years, they had not won it for 12, and had no players remaining from the side that had won the 1974 final.

The last remaining player to leave winners Liverpool was Ian Rush, who departed in 1996, while Kevin Ratcliffe's departure from Everton in 1992 meant that the runners-up had lost all of their players from the FA Cup final team within six years.

In 2006, in aid of The Marina Dalglish Appeal, the final was replayed in a charity game at Anfield. Liverpool ran out 1-0 winners thanks to a late goal from John Durnin.

Match details

10 May 1986
15:00 BST
Liverpool 3 – 1 Everton Wembley Stadium, London
Attendance: 98,000
Referee: Alan Robinson (Hampshire)
Rush  56'83'
Johnston  62'
Report Lineker  27'
Liverpool
Everton
LIVERPOOL:
GK 1 Bruce Grobbelaar
CB 2 Mark Lawrenson
LB 3 Jim Beglin
RB 4 Steve Nicol
LM 5 Ronnie Whelan
CB 6 Alan Hansen (c)
SS 7 Kenny Dalglish
RM 8 Craig Johnston
CF 9 Ian Rush
CM 10 Jan Mølby
CM 11 Kevin MacDonald
Substitute:
MF 12 Steve McMahon
Player/Manager:
Kenny Dalglish
EVERTON:
GK 1 Bobby Mimms
RB 2 Gary Stevens 72'
LB 3 Pat Van Den Hauwe
CB 4 Kevin Ratcliffe (c)
CB 5 Derek Mountfield
CM 6 Peter Reid
CM 7 Trevor Steven
CF 8 Gary Lineker
CF 9 Graeme Sharp
RM 10 Paul Bracewell
LM 11 Kevin Sheedy
Substitute:
MF 12 Adrian Heath 72'
Manager:
Howard Kendall

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