You would think being nicknamed ‘God’ would change a person, but Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler insists he is still “very, very normal” despite having “the best nickname in football.”
Averaging a goal every other game over the course of 369 appearances is an exceptional feat. Add into the mix Fowler’s supreme talent coupled with a special connection to the fans, you get a footballing god.
That’s what Liverpool fans decided to rename Fowler, thanks to his goalscoring exploits in a red shirt.
Speaking to This Is Anfield, the former striker reacted to the nickname, saying that “it’s not strange” to live with it.
“I don’t mean that in a egotistical way; I mean because I take it a face value,” he continued.
“It’s a nickname, you know. I don’t claim to be some sort of deity. I don’t go round calling myself it.
“I mean, I’m grateful for having a nickname because when I think of the brilliant players that Liverpool had over the years, the outstanding players they’ve had, that I’m the lad who gets that nickname.
“I think it’s probably genuinely the best nickname in football.”
Footballers, heroes like Fowler in particular, are often put on a pedestal and struggle to lead normal lives in public. This can sometimes lead to them becoming detached from reality.
Fowler, though, insists he is very down to earth, saying: “I don’t claim to be better than anyone else, I don’t claim to be much higher than anyone else. I’m very, very normal.
“I think when people know me and people speak to me away from football, I think they realise that.”
Having grown up in the Liverpool 8 area of the city, Fowler stayed true to his roots as a player. In 1997, he was fined by UEFA for revealing a t-shirt that supported striking dockers on Merseyside.
It seems fitting now that he has been honoured with a spectacular new mural, created by MurWalls, on the streets of Anfield – on the corner of Anfield Road and Coningsby Road.
“It it’s humbling, it really is,” Fowler said.
“I’ve not achieved it all on my own, I’ve had plenty of help along the way. It’s great for me but I think it’s a real thank you to everyone who’s aided my career.”
The mural plays on Fowler’s nickname of ‘God’, depicting the striker as on a stained glass window, designed to look like a church.
The 48-year-old was almost lost for words at times when he taking in the artwork, but he still managed to joke that he can “now probably be a little bit big-headed” when he walks past the mural.
I think that might be allowed, Robbie!
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