Ominous signs for parallel careers

GRAEME SOUNESS’ departure yesterday is good news for the forlorn Toon Army - except one particular soldier, for whom the sacking may be a sinister omen.

Souness was born in Edinburgh on May 6 1953, as was British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Since then their careers have run in parallel on several occasions, though the politician was never sent off in an Old Firm derby for a ferocious over-the-top tackle, as far as we recall.

In 1983, for instance, both enjoyed promotion - Blair, a young MP, became shadow Treasury spokesman for the Labour Party, the same year Souness made his dream move from Liverpool to Sampdoria in Italy’s Serie A.

Both moved up a gear in 1992 - Souness managed Liverpool to the FA Cup, while Blair hit the headlines with his “tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime” speech, an intervention that made his name. Five years later came a new departure for both. Souness took the hotseat as manager at Benfica, while Blair took a hotseat himself, moving to Number Ten Downing Street.

The pair share a medical problem: in 1992 Souness had a triple heart bypass, while in 2003 Blair was treated for an irregular heartbeat.

Last year, however, marked an apparent high water mark. In August Souness signed Michael Owen from Real Madrid, while Blair signed up for a third term as Prime Minister.

But this morning, Blair - a self-confessed Newcastle fan - wakes up to find the man who shares his birthday is out of work. The British Prime Minister had an unexpected reversal himself last Tuesday night, losing a crucial vote. Having watched his career graph mirror that of Souness for many years, one wonders if Mr Blair is expecting to get the dreaded vote of confidence any time soon ...