“AFTER 30 YEARS OF WAITING, YOU’RE ENTITLED TO MAKE A NIGHT OF IT”
It’s a strange thing to look back on 2020. There’s so much that I’m sure we would all like to wipe from our memories – a year of isolation and loss for so many. At the same time, I know I’ll reflect on it at some point and think it was the most memorable year for me, football-wise.
Nothing is given to you in sport. You sacrifice a lot, you give it everything each and every day, and you gamble it all on a ‘maybe’.
There are no guarantees. Take Liverpool waiting 30 years for the title. Or Scotland suffering for 22 years without making it to a major tournament.
Those were two causes that we took on. We gambled on that, and now we have something to show for it. Thinking about both brings a huge smile to my face.
When I signed for Liverpool, it was clear in my head that I wanted to be part of the team which finally ended that stretch. It was the goal. Growing up as a proud Scotsman, I also knew how much the nation wanted – needed – to make it back to a European Championship or World Cup after so long away.
There were plenty of sceptics around both achievements – maybe a hangover from past disappointments – so managing to tick off both of them in the same year has been absolutely amazing. It still gives me goosebumps. I feel so privileged to be part of two teams that, on a very simple level, have managed to make a lot of people happy this year, and at least offered a temporary distraction from the madness that’s gone on around us.
With Liverpool, nothing was decided until we were given the Premier League trophy to hold above our heads – but coming into 2020, the squad was full of belief. I
