Manager Biographies - Howard Kendall

Life since 1970 for an Everton fan has been hard. Not only has the blue contingent of Liverpool enjoyed limited success, for much of the ‘70s and ‘80s, Everton fans everywhere were forced to watch on in envy as neighbours Liverpool enjoyed success after success, both domestically and on the continental stage.

However, in nearly 40 years of playing the role of bridesmaid to Liverpool, there is one golden four-year period that fans of the Toffeemen can look back on with pride, when (on more than one occasion) they dethroned their dominant neighbours at the height of their powers.

The period from 1984 – 1987 was a time of much rejoicing for Everton fans; twice they landed the title and followed that up with FA Cup success, numerous Charity Shields, and even a night of Cup Winners’ Cup glory in Rotterdam. The man who oversaw this incredible flurry of successes from Everton? Howard Kendall.

Born in the area of Tyneside, Kendall became a legend at Goodison Park as a player in the ‘60s and ‘70s in a midfield trio alongside Alan Ball and Colin Harvey dubbed the Holy Trinity.

They won the league in 1969/70 and Kendall soon became captain, and it was this great leadership quality that would serve him so well in future years. By the time Kendall’s playing career was winding down, his mind was already on coaching and management as he spent time at Stoke as player-coach before taking control of Blackburn Rovers as player-manager, a rarity in those days.

Despite missing out on promotion to the top flight with Rovers on goal-difference, Kendall was enjoying a swelling reputation, and when the offer of player-manager came along from Goodison, the opportunity for the prodigal son to return home proved too much, and he was installed in his new role in May 1981.

Although a player-manager to begin with, Kendall’s legs were gone and he used himself only when necessary, but top-flight management was something he wasn’t used to and Kendall struggled in his early years.

The 1983/84 season was seen as a make-or-break for the one-time midfield maestro, and by January with results going against them and the league table pointing to another year of underachievement, the pressure on Kendall reached breaking point and he was widely rumoured to be on the verge of losing his job.

However, international stars such as Andy Gray, Neville Southall, Peter Reid, Gary Stevens and Kevin Sheedy came to the fore and put decent cup runs together in both the League and FA Cup, which galvanised their season and put Kendall back in favour with the board. They ended the season as League Cup runners-up, beaten by arch-rivals Liverpool in the final, but compensated for this heartache by lifting the FA Cup with Gray scoring a controversial header in the final as they saw off underdogs Watford, who featured a fresh young talent by the name of John Barnes.

This result shepherded in a period of near total domination from the two Liverpool clubs, with the Blues steamrollering to the league title by a massive 13 points the following season and claiming the European Cup Winners Cup, beating giants Bayern Munich in a thrilling semi final before triumphing in Rotterdam against Rapid Vienna.

An unprecedented treble was only denied (arguably through sheer exhaustion) when a late Norman Whiteside strike gave Manchester United a 1-0 win in the FA Cup final.

1985/86 saw Kendall march his team to the verge of legendary status before eventually coming up short in all competitions playing bridesmaid once again to neighbours Liverpool as the red half of Merseyside landed the League and FA Cup double.

In 86/87, though, a more experienced Everton side made it two league titles and threw off the tag of one-hit wonders as they brought the title back to Goodison Park. Many fans believe Everton would have achieved more European success had they been given the opportunity, but unfortunately Kendall’s success with the club coincided with the ban on English clubs in continental competition imposed following the Heysel disaster.

It was partly his frustration at this ban that caused Kendall to leave Goodison in 1987 at the height of his success, when he accepted a job offer from Spain and Atletico Bilbao. Everton fans everywhere reeled in shock as Kendall also split with his long-term assistant Colin Harvey, who stayed on to take the hot-seat on Merseyside.

A two-year period at the helm in Bilbao proved largely unsuccessful, although Kendall wasn’t helped by a strange tradition that allowed him to only sign and field Basque players. His sacking came after some poor form in 1989. Less than a month later Manchester City tempted him back to the English top flight, but when Everton offered him a second stint in charge just 12 months later, he found the offer impossible to refuse.

Unfortunately his second stint in charge was far less successful and after a lot of disagreements regarding transfer budgets, Kendall resigned his position and gave management a break for two years.

Further roles as boss of Notts County, Sheffield United and Greek club Ethnikos Piraeus followed before Kendall called time on his career.

As a boss, he’ll go down as an Everton legend, a man that ushered in the club’s most successful period and believed full-heartedly in a 4-4-2 diamond formation (right). Not only were the club successful under Kendall’s leadership, there was a huge belief in team-spirit and exciting attacking football.

At many of his various clubs, Kendall used a standard formula of a no-nonsense back four, with a hard tackling, defensive minded central midfielder sitting in front of them allowing the other three midfield men to roam and have a creative licence. It wasn’t unusual to see a target man employed up front, with a nippy poacher feeding off him. Will the same tactics help you match Kendall’s success on FM 2009?

How much success Kendall missed out on due to the ban on English teams in Europe is a matter of opinion. But many believe that if he could have kept hold of the squad that (in the main) moved elsewhere in search of European football then Everton could have enjoyed a period of success to perhaps even rival Liverpool or more recently Manchester United.