Graeme SounesS and Kevin Keegan played in great Liverpool teams which dominated European football.

They played for great managers such as Shankly and Paisley.

The dressing room was full of star players, but their biggest secret was no one was ever allowed to think he was a star.

How ironic it is then that they both said goodbye to the type of player, in Craig Bellamy and Nicolas Anelka, who wouldn't have got his foot in the door at Anfield in their day.

It certainly is a sign of the times when a fella like Anelka can wander round Europe for huge fees, play for clubs such as Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City, picking up millions in the process, and yet very rarely is seen to smile.

While Bellamy seems to snarl more than most and has teammates saying good riddance, he is still able to haunt Graeme Souness with the thought that, like the Terminator, he will be back.

Normally my money would be on Graeme, but such is the way of our game that if he doesn't get the results in the last third of the season to win Newcastle something, his position could be weakened by the time Mr Bellamy returns.

I was thinking recently, when reading about people's ideal lunch partners, what the opposite would be.

Imagine Anelka, Bellamy and his pal Robbie Savage being joined by John McCrirck.

No wonder managers earn their corn and look much older than they really are ...