Martin Skrtel could have played 90 minutes when the Liverpool Legends met Man United on Saturday, only with a family and “unfortunate” injury that forced him to withdraw.
Six years after leaving for Fenerbahce, Skrtel made his Liverpool Legends debut when they hosted United at Anfield on Saturday night.
The centre-back, who retired from the pitch only in May, started alongside Stephane Henchoz in defense in a match that ended 2-1 after goals from Mark Gonzalez and Florent Sinama-Pongolle.
It was no surprise that Skrtel was in a position to go far, with a fitness and age advantage over many of his team-mates, but with around 75 minutes left on the clock he was withdrawn with injury.
After a clash of heads with Fraizer Campbell, the Slovakian had to leave the field and Momo Sissoko replaced him, but speaking to LFCTV after the match, he confirmed that he was given the go-ahead.
“I’m fine! It was an accident. That can happen,” he explained.
“Unfortunately it happened to me many times, but thank God I’m fine!”
The charity game was the first time Skrtel had represented the Reds since leaving in 2016, and the 37-year-old spoke of his joy at returning.
“[It is] exciting, you know? he said.
“Obviously I was a bit nervous because to come back, the stadium has changed a bit.
“But anyway, playing for Liverpool is always an honor for me. It’s no different if he was professional or now.
“I enjoyed today and I hope that in the future I can get more of these types of games.”
Skrtel is likely to get a call the next time the Liverpool Legends are in action as he has proven to be a valuable asset to Sir Kenny Dalglish, giving him another chance to revisit the city.
“It was the first time I had been back to Liverpool since I left,” he explained.
“It was nice to come back, see the guys. It was a little embarrassing that Stevie or Carra or some of them couldn’t come, but I enjoyed the guys that made it here.
“We had a good game and now we look forward to a good night!”
