Summer Nostalgia
Tuesday, July 28th, 2009
I fondly remember a transfer tornado sweeping across Scottish football in the 1990s. Every summer the back pages were on fire, bustling with scoops about big name signings descending into Glasgow on David Murray’s Bear Force One. Evening Times vendors were bellowing transfer news across George Square. Football hacks were on an intravenous drip of Red Bull, trying to keep up with over-excited taxi drivers. It felt like it was all going off. So who’s coming to dinner now – Danny Fox? If that’s the guest list, I’m locking my door.
Chairmen spent wildly back then, and as a result, many clubs are now rattling the piggy bank, but it was great entertainment while it lasted: David Murray declared “I have a dream”, pledging to make Rangers kings of Europe. But a gangly Norwegian sniper, with the co-ordination of a baby giraffe, paid heed to his ambition. A manic Gazza stormed around Glasgow, thumping on McCoist’s front door at 3am to see if he wanted a game of pool. Amoruso strutted through the Italian Centre in Gucci leathers, while urban myths about the size of his plonker reverberated around the hair salons of Glasgow.
Let’s be honest, the current “product” is pretty poor. The SPL should compensate for this lack of quality with humour; how about Andy Cameron performs jazz ballet, in the centre circle at Ibrox, before every match? I hope the Old Firm receive a massive injection of cash and embark on another ridiculous, self-destructive spending spree in the transfer market. It’s selfish, but I miss the surreal soap opera that aired in summers gone by…