Liverpool in the late 1990s did not have high achievements but the most attractive team in the Premier League with people who were both talented and strong. And Robbie Fowler is the biggest symbol for Liverpool at that stage, with the celebration of “smoking cocaine” that shocked English football.
Liverpool's symbol
Robbie Fowler was born in Toxteth, a famous residential area of Liverpool port city. He grew up with streets full of conflict, violence and poverty, where football was the only way for boys to change their lives.
Fowler soon stands out in the youth teams thanks to the incredible goalscoring ability with his left leg. Until the first team in 1993, Fowler immediately made a mark. And in just a few seasons, he became the main striker of Liverpoo, the team he loved from in the blood.
Fowler was called by Liverpool fans nicknamed “God” (God) not only because of the number of goals scored, but because of the way he lived and fought for the red shirt. On the pitch, Fowler was not as beautiful as Cantona, not as muscular as Alan Shearer, but extremely smart in moving, choosing location and especially finishing with his left foot.
In the yard, Fowler is the embodiment of Liverpool street culture: funny, naughty, and somewhat backward. That personality makes Fowler both passionate and easy to cause trouble – that “celebrating cocaine” is a typical.
The celebration goes into English football history
On April 3, 1999, Liverpool received Everton at Anfield in the Merseyside derby. Everything will pass like many other tense derby, if Robbie Fowler, the brace in the battle, does not create one of the most famous moments in the Premier League history. After scoring from the penalty spot, Fowler ran to the border, knelt down and bowed his head along the white lime as if … “inhaling cocaine”.
The whole stadium exploded. Liverpool fans cheered for Fowler's boldness, while Everton was indignant. The media immediately condemned. The British Football Federation (FA) launched an investigation and sentenced to a 4 -match suspension with a fine of 32,000 pounds.
Liverpool then explained that Fowler only “mocked” the bullshit accusations of Everton fans, who once spread rumors that Fowler used drugs. Liverpool's coach Gerard Houlier also defended his students and said, “It was the reaction of a slandered boy, not a drug promotion.”
However, the FA side did not accept. Although everyone understood Fowler did not really involve cocaine, but the act of simulating on live broadcasting was too offensive in the context of drug elimination campaigns happening throughout England. It is not only a “lack of thought”, but also the pain of many families who have lost their relatives for drugs, including Fowler himself.
“I hate drugs, I'm just too angry”
Later, in many interviews, Fowler confided about the moment when he went to the “black book” of English football. He affirmed: “I really hate drugs. Some of my family members died of drugs. I grew up in a neighborhood where drugs killed the whole community.” For Fowler, the accused of using cocaine is not only a personal insult, but also an insult to the place he was born.
“I knew I was wrong. That celebration was really ashamed, and I was also embarrassed to review. But I was too angry, too angry because I was slander again and again,” Fowler said. “I don't think of consequences, just want to react immediately.”
Despite being severely punished, that moment did not make Fowler boycott. On the contrary, it made him more considered the protest symbol of a generation representing a thorny, emotional and indomitable Liverpool.
Fowler then left Liverpool, but the image of him inhaling lime is still one of the most prominent moments in the Premier League history. Not because it is beautiful, but because it is a moment of emotional reaction of a person who lives true to himself.
A Liverpool is both fiery and rebellious
At the end of the 20th century, Liverpool was no longer the dominant power, but it was the most attractive team in the English Premier League. They are not afraid to play a couple, not afraid to collide, and own a team with a strong personality that no coach is easy to control.
It was a rebellious Stan Collymore, a pompous Steve McManaman, a romantic Patrick Berger, a cold -hearted Michael Owen, and of course the rebellious fowler.
Liverpool of those years often brings matches with a score of 5-4, 4-3 or 3-3, where the audience is satisfied with the goals, but the coach is … miserable with the defense.
It is the football that people today call “Rock'N'Roll Football”, the football does not calculate, does not defend the majority, but only attacks and creates emotions. And Robbie Fowler is the main melody of that rock – thorny, wild and no regrets.
Lesson from white lime
The celebration of “inhaling cocaine” is not only a scandal, but also a symbol of an intense but vulnerable Liverpool in the late 1990s. Robbie Fowler was not a broken person, but a protest between the prejudice, social prejudice and pressure from both in the pitch. It is a lesson about the emotional revealing, about the true value of the player, and the way football reflects a whole generation to live with yourself.
