Anfield legend Saunders dies

Tom Saunders (r) was a popular figure at Anfield

Liverpool football club have been shocked by the death of their vice-president Tom Saunders.

It is the third legendary figure associated with Anfield to have passed away over the past week.

It follows the deaths of former manager Joe Fagan and 79-year-old Billy Liddell, a star of the 40s and 50s.

Manager Gerard Houllier paid tribute to 80-year-old Saunders, who has been a key member of the backroom team from the Boot Room era until the present day.

I have a photograph of Tom and I with the three trophies we won, which I will always cherish

  Gerard Houllier

"He was like my father," Houllier said. "I chatted to him at our training ground every day.

"He was a man of football not only a figure of the past but a man of the future - a visionary.

"Even when he was ill at the end of last season, he was determined to join us in Cardiff, Dortmund and Charlton. I have a photograph of Tom and I with the three trophies we won, which I will always cherish."

Saunders will be mourned by many of the current Liverpool squad who have come through the Anfield ranks.

The former club scout and youth development officer took a keen interest in the club's youngsters when he eventually joined the board.