Get your hands on the latest issue of FourFourTwo magazine – available in print from Thursday or on your device now!
Growing up as a teenager in the ’90s, my two obsessions were football and music – specifically Fulham and Oasis. Back then, Fulham were a lower-league team beginning to rise and Oasis quickly became the biggest band on the planet.
In August 1998, my two worlds collided when Manchester City came to Craven Cottage on a balmy Friday night – sat behind me in the boxes at the back of the old Hammersmith Terrace were Liam and Noel Gallagher, behaving like true rock stars and trading insults with the home fans.
I found myself in an odd position that my teenage brain struggled to deal with. In front of me were 11 men that I idolised, behind me were two men that I worshipped – and they were on opposing sides. Fulham won 3-0 and by the end of the night a new hero emerged: a German striker by the name of Dirk Lehmann, who bagged a brace.
Football and music are as important to me now as they were then – as we discover in this issue, Manchester City and football were always going to be core to Oasis’ identity, too.
Elsewhere, we tell the stories of other rockstar footballers – including the greatest player you never saw, Robin Friday – as well as remembering the mercurial George Best’s post-Manchester United career and Elton John’s years owning Watford. Enjoy the mag.
James
Oasis x Man City: The masterplan
In 1994, a legendary photographer shot some iconic portraits for a soon-to-be legendary band. As Oasis’ reunion tour begins, the snapper and others explain how football was at the heart of their supersonic rise.
The finest player you never saw
Oasis x Man City: The masterplan
In 1994, a legendary photographer shot some iconic portraits for a soon-to-be legendary band. As Oasis’ reunion tour begins, the snapper and others explain how football was at the heart of their supersonic rise.
The finest player you never saw
There is also a piece on Reading and Cardiff City LEGEND Robin Friday that features an interview with Paolo Hewitt who talks about writing a book about him with Guigsy.
Wild child Robin Friday was a pro footballer for less than four years, and dead before he was 40. But his legend lives on, thanks to his skills and his antics – from squeezing Bobby Moore’s testicles to impersonating a policeman.
The magazine is in stores on Thursday or click here to order the magazine digitally or physically.