The top 10 Liverpool players to wear the No 7 shirt (ranked)
'When you play for Liverpool, it means more.' This is the feeling players get when they join the club, walk beneath the lionised 'This is Anfield' sign, gaze over to the ominous presence of the Spion Kop, or hearken to a spine-tingling rendition of 'You'll Never Walk Alone', which acts as a crescendo to the yearning for more. More wins, more domestic silverware, and more European royalty.
But for players who are bestowed the famous number 7 shirt, a weight of expectation from the entire city ensues most salient. At Liverpool, the number 7 stitching resembles importance. It is usually given to the player at the heart of attacking fortunes, and they are counted on to be the vanguard for yet another period of Merseyside domination.
For the Reds, who have luxuriated in a time-honoured history of sitting on the continent's throne, they have very rarely had reason to grumble over their number 7. With so many prolific virtuosos to adore in every generation and zenith, Anfield has welcomed many a player to their folklore.
It's an unenviable task to only name 10 of the greatest, but Football FanCast did its best.
10 Harry Kewell
Injuries took ahold of Harry Kewell in his time at Anfield, but he was great when fit. The former Leeds United winger hailing from Australia spent five seasons in red between 2003 and 2008, to which he wowed his fans with beautifully struck shots from outside the area on plenty an occasion.
Kewell was one of those players that found the left wing easy to master. He would drift in and out of gaps and create chances for his teammates out of nothing, and his partnership on the flank with John Arne Riise was pivotal to Liverpool's Houllier and Benitez eras.
Of course, the 'Wizard of Oz' had his career plagued by injury, making his playing days one of those great football 'what if' stories.
9 Vladimir Smicer
Vladimir Smicer's Liverpool career ended in the best possible way when his final kick helped to hand the Reds their famous Champions League triumph in the most dramatic of finals after he had helped them to come back from a 3-0 half-time deficit against AC Milan in that night in Istanbul.
Playing from 1999 to 2005, the Czech Republic's shining star endured a topsy-turvy spell on Merseyside, but his role in 2005 – as well as involvements in the 2001 treble – make him a cherished midfielder in Liverpool. Harry Kewell's early injury blow in the Champions League final undoubtedly played its part in Smicer's position above him.
8 James Milner
The most recent wearer of the famous 7 shirt before Luis Diaz took reign for the 2023/24 season, James Milner was the unheralded jack of all trades who played a massive part in Jurgen Klopp's cultivation of trophies, which saw the Reds return to the pedestal of world football.
An archetypal Klopp pupil, the midfielder/defender/winger helped dressing room morale with his unassailable leadership, while his endless running, which helped him win Liverpool's brutal pre-season lactate test before every campaign, became the crux of many a great gegenpressing masterclass – both at home and abroad.
A player with the mental and physical toughness of Milner is always celebrated in the north-west. He might have been criticised for his risk-averse playing style by those not attached to Liverpool, but his significance in leading the Reds – alongside Jordan Henderson – to their first league title in 30 years, as well as two Champions League finals which saw them double their European pedigree above arch enemies Manchester United, cannot be underestimated.
Like a fine wine, now that he's plying his trade for Brighton & Hove Albion, it wouldn't be a surprise to see the Englishman play for another decade before calling it a day, either. In essence, his industrious work rate is matched only by those who made Liverpool great in the first place.
7 Peter Beardsley
Despite later moving to Everton in 1991, Peter Beardsley is still loved across the city for his involvement at both clubs. For Liverpool, he was passionately described as being a blend of Keegan and Dalglish. Kopites, to this day, still gush about the fact Beardsley, though not from the area himself, was made for Liverpool.
The Barnes-Beardsley-Aldridge triumvirate clicked perfectly, proving such sentiment correct. The only thing stopping the necromantic No 7, who later took up the No 10 role, from breaking into this top five, was his short tenure at the club, alongside the attacking lineup he was a part of being on borrowed time.
Upon Ian Rush's impending arrival, the tantalising prospect of skipping to Anfield and watching Beardsley connect effortlessly with Barnes and Aldridge slowly faded. It wasn't long before he made the switch across Stanley Park after 59 goals in 175 appearances for the Reds.
Nevertheless, his work ethic from attack is still unmatched by any other Liverpool 7. From the perspective of a relentlessly demanding Anfield, they couldn't have asked for a better workhorse.
6 Luis Suárez
If Luis Suárez stayed at Liverpool for Longer, there would've been a fair chance that the Uruguayan would be much higher in this list, especially if his Anfield days came under the nurturing of Jurgen Klopp. Sadly, this was false hope, but El Pistolero perhaps made the biggest impact in the shortest time on Merseyside.
Across 82 goals in 133 appearances, Suarez forged a reputation as one of the planet's most gifted modern-day footballers, and he had a knack for the phenomenal. In such little time, he also scored six hat-tricks, nearly fired the Reds to their first league title since 1990, and helped himself to a record-breaking 31 goals and 12 assists in the 2013/14 Premier League season.
At the peak of his powers, there weren't many strikers more rounded and outright spectacular. In a glittering career marred by trademark Suarez controversy, he played 789 times, scored 481 goals, and assisted for a further 293.
He is only lowly in this list because he took part in one League Cup trophy for a club that struggles to find space for any more. Since his time was short, too, it would be an injustice to put him ahead of those that came before him and conquered – even if, with his whole career considered, he is one of the greatest strikers ever.
5 Steve McManaman
If there was anyone who knew the importance of the number 7 shirt, it was Steve McManaman – who took the honours and became an influential figure at Anfield from the mid to late-90s.
Playing in the 'free role' that Roy Evans granted him, rival managers would coin the expression that, if you stop him from playing, you stop Liverpool. Of course, Robbie Fowler, John Barnes, Jamie Redknapp and Jan Mølby were also great players at the time, but nobody stoked the engine room quite like the Bootle-born man.
Unfortunately for the Reds, the Bosman ruling allowed their star man to join Real Madrid for free in the summer of 1999 after starring for the club on 362 occasions, over nine years that brought 65 goals. But when McManaman joined Los Blancos and continued to stun the continent, it proved his excellence.
4 Billy Liddell
"Throughout the dark days of the second division he never gave less than his best and his forays down both wings and, later in his career, his battering ram performances as centre forward gave us hope that we would rise again" – John Martin for LFCHistory.net.
Although Billy Liddell didn't wear the number 7 shirt for all his career – which spanned 534 games – he was the first. During a time when life in Merry Old England was anything but, he warmed the hearts of Anfield and its surrounding streets with his magical performances and cannonball strikes.
Few performers in any sport get to be known only by their Christian name. Many are accorded affectionate nicknames; Rushie, Carra, Stevie G, Cally, Smithy and Thommo come readily to mind. But there were three players in the city of Liverpool's immortal history that were known by their first name, Billy (Liddell), Kenny (Dalglish) and Dixie (Dean).
It was 'Billy' who wore it first, and although forgotten about since the start of his playing days predated Bill Shankly's rule, it was Billy's years as a raiding winger that acted as a precursor to the long production line of great number 7 incumbents.
3 Kevin Keegan
Despite playing his best football in Hamburg – where he won himself two Ballons d'Or to become the maiden superstar for English footballers earning success abroad – Kevin Keegan played a valuable role at the crux of Liverpool's formative years as a European giant.
Scoring 84 times in 257 appearances across six years, the forward made a name for himself as a talismanic hawk who would dribble beyond markers with relative ease to poach goals for fun. Although only standing at 5 foot 8, Keegan also displayed aerial presence that paved the way for him to become a darling of the Spion Kop.
It didn't take long, either, for him to make an impact. On his debut, he would score and assist in a mesmerising three-minute spell against Nottingham Forest. From then on, he would continue to vindicate the credence that a new star was born on 14th August 1971, dazzling spectators across Europe with his deft touches and luscious perm.
2 Ian Callaghan
The great Ian Callaghan, or 'Marathon Man', as he's known around the streets that adorn the River Mersey because of his tremendous third-lung stamina and career longevity, enjoyed a 19-year career at Liverpool. Between 1959 and 1978, he became the club's all-time highest appearance-maker with 857 games, ensuring his legacy will remain eternal.
Callaghan played most of his football in midfield, but would often take up the right wing in his formative years, with his blistering pace and vision key to the Reds' endeavours to escape second-tier mediocrity. Certainly, the saying goes that success has many fathers, and it was Bill Shankly who would first talk up the idea of Liverpool reaching football's pinnacle.
He said: "My idea was to build Liverpool into a bastion of invincibility. Napoleon had that idea. He wanted to conquer the bloody world. I wanted Liverpool to be untouchable. My idea was to build Liverpool up and up until eventually, everyone would have to submit and give in".
Arguably, it was Ian Callaghan who played one of the biggest roles in delivering Shankly's promises.
1 Kenny Dalglish
As Anfield continues to transform in its modern chronicle, Sir Kenny Dalglish is still known as its king. He is arguably the greatest player to ply their trade for the Reds, with his 20 trophies in 13 glorious years only being bettered by the fact he scored 141 goals just to return later to turn back the clocks and do it all over again as a manager.
The flying Scotsman revolutionised 'The Liverpool Way' and became an honorary Scouser under the governance of Bob Paisley, who also couldn't believe his apprentice's footballing mastery had a place on Earth. Dalglish could do it all, and he became known for his trademark curling finishes into the top corners of the Kop-backing nets, while his technical competence was more like a master key for any opposition defence.
However, the truth is, Dalglish never left in the first place, and he is still yet to. His face is still seen, and is just as recognisable to the Kopites now as it was in the 70s, 80s and 90s, when it was more common to see him clutching a European Cup than his red and white scarf, to which he has been seen lovingly cradling around his neck throughout the Jurgen Klopp era.