Viv Anderson says that in 20 years he hopes the sight of a black man in the dugout will be as common as it is on the pitch today.
The former Manchester United, Arsenal and Nottingham Forest defender casts his mind back to the late 1970s when, despite young black English players such as Laurie Cunningham, Cyrille Regis and Garth Crooks all impressing in the top flight, none had been given the chance at international level.
A Radical Hero
An audience with Viv Anderson
People's History Museum, Manchester
7-9pm, Thursday 15 October
Suggested donation - £5
Click here for more information
That was until, in 1978, Ron Greenwood gave 22-year-old Anderson his chance.
And a few days later he became the first black man to represent England when he made his debut for against Czechoslovakia.
“I got the call from the manager at Forest at the time, which was the late great Brian Clough. He said I’d been selected,” recalled Anderson, in an exclusive interview with TheFA.com.
“In the build-up to that week there had been a lot of speculation in the press as to whether or not I would be included, but then I finally got the call from the manager to say that I was in.
Viv Anderson was assistant manager at Middlesbrough and had a short spell in charge at Barnsley
“In those days you wouldn’t get a call yourself, instead it would be a letter through the post – it was the club who got the call, before you get the letter.”
He continued: “I was born and bred in Nottingham. I never thought in my wildest dreams I would ever get the call.
"I was obviously very honoured and privileged to be part of the England squad that had some great names in it.
“The likes of Kevin Keegan, Trevor Brooking and Bob Latchford – all these players that I’ve grown up and watched over the years.”
Despite admitting to being somewhat star-struck, the young right-back was there on merit.
The late Keith Alexander was the first full-time black professional manager in the Football League
He had already won the First Division championship and League Cup with Forest – and was on the way to the first of his two European Cup winners’ medals.
And so on a freezing night in November, in front of 92,000 people at Wembley Stadium, Vivian Alexander Anderson made history.
Nearly 40 years on Anderson says the landscape has changed immeasurably for black players – but only on the pitch, not off it.
“It’s great now. You go up and down the country and you see black faces in most teams you watch,” he continued.
“It’s encouraging to see that we’ve moved on and that being black and playing for England isn't a news story any more.
“But there’s still a big gap between playing and management – and the figures show there’s only three black managers in the professional game.
Viv Anderson played for England 30 times from 1978 to 1988
“That’s compared to hundreds of players, so there is a step that we have to take – and I think sooner rather than later.”
Anderson – who will be appearing in a special Q&A session at the People's History Museum in Manchester on Thursday 15 October – was speaking at the start of Black History Month.
And asked whether he sees the number of black managers in the professional game increasing over the next few years Anderson – who had a brief spell in charge of Barnsley in 1993-94 – said things can change.
“I certainly hope so. I was a manager 20-odd years ago, and there’s was another lad who’s sadly not with us any more called Keith Alexander – he was the first, and I was the second.
“I’m hopeful in the next 20 or 30 years it will have moved on and we look back at 2015 as many do now at 1978 with regard to black players”
Viv Anderson
“You would have thought that 20 years on there would have been more than two or three black managers in the game. So clearly things haven’t moved as we would have liked .
“I’m hopeful in the next 20 or 30 years it will have moved on and we look back at 2015 as many do now at 1978 with regard to black players, but we have to put things in place to make sure it does happen.
“There’s lots of black kids up and down this country playing football – and they need to see role models that not just play football, but that they can go on to managerial roles and become successful managers.”
Radical Hero – An audience with Viv Anderson
To coincide with Black History Month, Rodney Hinds from The Voice newspaper is hosting a special talk-in with Viv, chatting through his life and career.
Viv will share his experiences from a time when racism in football was vicious, discuss the challenges he faced and he overcame them to become one of the game’s true pioneers.
