To get the juices flowing ahead of England’s adventure in Russia each week in Football Fancast we’re going to be looking back at a unforgettable moment from the Three Lions’ World Cup canon.
This time out we revisit the emergence of a strike partnership made in heaven
In 1986 Bobby Robson’s England travelled to Mexico with a squad boasting Europe’s most prolific striker. That was encouraging enough because after hitting the target 40 times in 57 games in a stunning debut season for Everton in Gary Lineker there was, at the very least, a promise of goals.
But it got much better, because either side of the Football League’s deadliest hit-man was Chris Waddle and Trevor Steven, two gifted wingers capable of providing Lineker with all the ammunition he needed, while best of all alongside him twinkled and schemed Peter Beardsley.
Nobody really knew at this point how harmonious the partnership would prove to be; that it was a match made in heaven. The pair had linked up well a couple of times in qualifying and in friendlies too but it was in the stifling heat of Monterrey – a city in the north-eastern state of Nuevo Leon, Mexico – where Beardsley’s swishing became the perfect foil to Lineker’s lunge and a reassessment was made across England’s top flight as to what constituted a devastating strike duo. Out went the classic big-man-small-man. In vogue came the poacher and the deep-lying artisan.
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This though was not immediately apparent. Against Portugal in the Three Lions’ opening fixture Mark Hateley was employed to little effect, with Beardsley appearing late on from the bench. A 1-0 defeat brought tremendous pressure onto Robson who was already under fire for failing to guide England to the Euros two years earlier.
It got worse when Ray Wilkins got sent off in the following game for throwing the ball away in a fit of pique and playing 50 minutes with ten men under a blazing sun meant a goalless draw with Morocco had to be the accepted compromise. On this occasion the impish Newcastle forward didn’t even make a cameo, nor too did Steven or Watford’s 22-year-old prodigy John Barnes. The trio kicked their heels in t-shirts and tracksuit bottoms, watching on in frustration as England apathetically circled the drain. Up front meanwhile Lineker toiled. There was no longer a promise of goals.
And so to Poland, the final group game and one that Robson’s men simply had to win. With Wilkins suspended and his namesake and captain Bryan also unavailable having walked off nursing a dislocated shoulder in the disastrous Morocco encounter changes had to be made in midfield, but it’s to the great man’s enormous credit that he went further still. In a match that would essentially define his entire managerial career Robson reimagined all but his trusted back-line, drafting in Steven on the right, dropping Waddle to accommodate the craft of Glenn Hoddle, while up front Beardsley finally got the nod to start.
It took just ten minutes for the alchemy to ignite. From an aimless clearance, Lineker cleverly redirected the ball back into a central area and Beardsley pounced on it, laying it back to his new-found amigo. The future crisp magnate manoeuvred the ball out wide and wasted no time in haring into the box for its swift return. From close range he poached on the low delivery as if he was wearing the blue of Everton.
The celebrations were unbridled, containing a sizable amount of relief.
Five minutes later and the narrative of England’s tournament was turned on its head when with one exquisite touch Beardsley set Steve Hodge free and his pinpoint cross landed at the feet of a reborn marksman. He feasted on it like Alan Brazil at a buffet.
Incredibly though there was more to come and still in the first half too. This was not simply a memorable game that would eventually lead to the Hand of God and later tears in Turin under the tutorage of Robson: this was an announcement.
With 34 minutes on the clock, Trevor Steven swung over a corner and the Polish keeper spilled it unhindered right at the boot that was destined to be golden.
The swing of Lineker’s left leg as he scooped home his hat-trick into an unguarded net. The arms held aloft in jubilation – one bandaged – and with his head tilted back to bask in the burning Mexican sky. These are iconic images for anyone born long enough ago to recall them.
England were through and Paraguay awaited (with Lineker grabbing a brace and Beardsley scoring a third). After that there was the small matter of Argentina and a man named Diego Armando Maradona. What could possibly go wrong?
What happened next?
A sixth strike in the famous quarter final earned Lineker a Golden Boot and shortly after a big money move to Barcelona. Peter Beardsley meanwhile remained in the North East for another season, fighting relegation with his beloved Magpies.
Reunited for England’s Euro ’88 qualifying campaign the duo scored seven goals between them.
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