50 years since LFC first wore all red

The momentous alteration was the brainchild of iconic manager Bill Shankly, who figured that doing away with white socks and trim would make his team more intimidating. He was right.

When Liverpool were formed back in 1892, they were kitted out in a strip that bore more of a likeness to that of modern-day Blackburn Rovers rather than the Reds we know today.

The blue and white top with navy shorts and socks remained the club's colours for four years before being replaced by the red and white associated with the pre-Shankly era.

There were no dramatic changes to the kit during the early part of our history, with black socks sporadically breaking the trend. However, the famous Liverbird took its perch on the left-hand side of the chest from 1955.

Then, in 1964, Shankly made the decision that would transform the perception of the team forever.

"We used to play in white shorts with red stripes, white stockings with red tops and white piping on the jerseys," recalled the Glenbuck native.

"But we switched to all red and it was fantastic. The introduction of the all-red strip had a huge psychological effect.

"I went home that night and I said to my wife Ness: "You know something... tonight I went out onto Anfield and for the first time there was a glow like a fire was burning.

"Our game against Anderlecht was a night of milestones. We wore the all-red strip for the first time. Christ, the players looked like giants. And we played like giants."

Writing about the origins of the change in his autobiography, Liverpool icon Ian St John recalled: "Shankly thought the colour scheme would carry psychological impact - red for danger, red for power.

"He came into the dressing room one day and threw a pair of red shorts to Ronnie Yeats. 'Get into those shorts and let's see how you look,' he said. 'Christ, Ronnie, you look awesome, terrifying. You look 7ft tall.'"

It was November 24, the day before the club were due to play Anderlecht in a second-round first-leg tie in the European Cup.

"We'd just finished training and I was on the way home when Shanks called me back," recalled Yeats, the Liverpool captain at the time, who went on to play a total of 454 games for the club.

"My initial reaction was that I'd done something wrong. Either that or I was getting a pay rise! Anyway, it was neither. 'I want you to try on this all-red strip,' he asked. So I went into the dressing room and put it on.

"I came out and the boss was nowhere to be seen so I went down the steps towards the players tunnel and I could see him out in the middle of the pitch with Bob Paisley.

"I made my way towards them and as I got closer Shanks came out with that immortal line, about me looking 7ft tall. 'We're going to play in all-red from now on'.

"We wore it the next night against and beat Anderlecht 3-0. That was that and Liverpool have played in these colours ever since."

Indeed, the kit's first outing brought a massive scalp. The visitors were beaten 3-0 in front of the Kop, with St John striking after just 10 minutes in the new strip to put Shankly's side in command.

Roger Hunt then steered them closer to victory on the cusp of half-time, before Yeats himself put the game beyond the Belgians after five minutes of the second half to cap a momentous night for the club.

Six months on from that victory under the floodlights, Liverpool stepped out onto the Wembley turf dressed all in red and won the FA Cup for the first time, with Shankly at the helm.

No-one knows if Leeds United really were truly intimidated by their opponents' attire on the day, but the trophies brought to Anfield over the next 25 years provided ample proof that Shanks' brainwave was one of the most important decisions in the club's history.