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Got a football trivia question bugging you? Ask The Gaffer by email, text message or Twitter and Orange's expert will answer the best ones.
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Twitter: Click here to get daily Tweets and to send in your trivia questions. Latest answer: The answer is 16. Liverpool lost five games at home and 11 away in the 1993-94 season, which saw them finish eighth in the Premier League.
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Sunday 21 March
Deano: I'm a big Gazza fan - can you tell me of his first goal for England, and if it's the match I'm thinking of, did a lower league player score as well?
The Gaffer says: Gazza's first goal for England was against Albania in a 5-0 win in 1989. Gary Lineker, Peter Beardsley and Chris Waddle were the other scorers. You are thinking of Gazza's second goal in a 4-2 win over Czechoslovakia a year later. Steve Bull grabbed a brace.
James Barry: How many current Welsh internationals play in the Premier League?
The Gaffer says: Sixteen is the answer. They are Aaron Ramsey, James Collins, Jason Brown, Sam Ricketts, Simon Davies, Boaz Myhill, Craig Bellamy, Ryan Giggs (albeit retired), Danny Collins, Gareth Bale, Danny Gabbidon, Jack Collison, Jason Koumas, David Edwards, Sam Vokes and Wayne Hennessey.
Nick York: Hi Gaff. How many non-top flight teams have won the FA Cup against top flight opposition? Saints' 1976 win over Man Utd is one, but how many others? RIP Bobby Stokes!
The Gaffer says: Notts County (1894), Tottenham (1901), Wolves (1908), Barnsley (1912), WBA (1931), Sunderland (1973), Southampton (1976), and West Ham (1980) all beat top-flight opposition.
Est 1876: Which team has played in the most fa cup finals, without winning the compation?
The Gaffer says: Leicester City, runners-up in 1949, 1961, 1963 and 1969.
Dan: Who are the players in this year's Premier League to have initials the same as their managers? I've got Micheal Maniciene and Ryan Babel.
The Gaffer says: There's only one other: Matt Murray at Wolves.
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Saturday 20 March
Josh, York: Can you list the players who have worn the number seven shirt for Liverpool in order?
The Gaffer says: Since players have had a fixed number (1993-94): Nigel Clough, Steve McManaman, Vladimir Smicer, Harry Kewell, Robbie Keane.
Levi love: Hi Gaff. When Wrexham beat Porto in the Cup Winners' Cup back in the eighties and then lost bravely to Roma, what were the scores in all four ties and what year was it?
The Gaffer says: It was the 1984-85 season. Wrexham beat Porto 1-0 at home in the first leg, losing 4-3 in the return, going through on away goals. They lost 2-0 and 1-0 against Sven-Goran Eriksson's Roma in the next round.
Al, Rugby: Can you refresh my memory please Gaff? I seem to recall Gillingham winning two consecutive league games in the 80s scoring something like 17 goals in the process. Is this a record?
The Gaffer says: In 1987, the Gills hit the headlines when, on consecutive Saturdays, they beat Southend United 8-1 and Chesterfield 10-0, the latter a club record for a Football League match. It should also be noted that they had scored only once in four games before the Southend visit!
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Friday 19 March
Peter Ball: Gaffer, following the nine goals scored in the second half of the Burton Albion v Cheltenham match, what is the highest number of goals scored in a single half of a Premiership / Football League match?
The Gaffer says: The English League record was set in a Division 3 North match on January 2, 1934. Stockport led Halifax 2-0 at half-time and went on to plunder ELEVEN goals in the second half to seal a 13-0 victory.
Man U: Name six players who played for Manchester United and AC Milan since the war.
The Gaffer says: David Beckham (above), Ray Wilkins, Jaap Stam, Joe Jordan, Jesper Blomqvist, Massimo Taibi.
Mike The Barman: Hi gaffer, who was the last player to score a hat-trick for and against Scotland. I think it might be Rob Earnshaw against us?
The Gaffer says: Incredibly you have to go back to Scotland's World Cup qualifying clash against Cyprus on May 17, 1969 to find the last man to score a hat-trick for the Scots. It was Colin Stein and he actually netted four in the 8-0 win. Robert Earnshaw was indeed the last to get one against Scotland, on February 18, 2004. In Scotland's previous game, Ruud van Nistelrooy also notched a treble for Holland.
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Thursday 18 March
Bennyboy: Gaff who was the last player to score a hat trick against England?
The Gaffer says: Marco van Basten in Holland's 3-1 win during the 1988 European Championship finals. He's the 10th player to score a hat-trick against England. The others are Juan Seminario (Peru), Aleksandar Petakovic (Yugoslavia), Nandor Hidegkuti (Hungary), Richard Hofmann (Germany), Alex Jackson, Robert Smyth McColl, John Smith, George Ker, John McDougall (all Scotland).
Ernie: Hi Gaffer, my mate says that only one team beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge while Jose Mourinho was in charge and this was an FA Cup game. Is this true? Excellent page.
The Gaffer says: Not quite. Mourinho actually lost two games at Stamford Bridge. One was on penalties to Charlton in the League Cup, and the other in the Champions League against Barcelona. He never lost a Premier League game though.
James, Preston: Being a Man Utd fan, I was wondering how Ruud van Nistelrooy's goals-per-game record compares to Wayne Rooney? Thanks Gaff.
The Gaffer says: Van Nistelrooy has the edge. The Dutchman scored 150 goals in 219 matches, a goal every 1.46 games. Rooney has netted 129 times in 276 appearances, a goal every 2.14 matches.
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Wednesday 17 March
Boz: Who was the first player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup tournament?
The Gaffer says: Argentine striker Guillermo Stabile was long thought to be the first World Cup hat-trick scorer. However, in 2006, Fifa declared that United States forward Bert Patenaude had scored the first treble two days prior to Stabile in the inaugural 1930 tournament. Patenaude scored all three goals in a 3-0 win over Paraguay.
Hunts Villan: Got a couple for you Gaff, what is the most popular surname to play for England? Also, who is the closest team in the Prem to field an all-black XI? My money is on Villa.
The Gaffer says: Smith wins it with 20. Next is Brown with nine followed by Wright and Roberts on seven. However, the surname Wright has won the most caps (198). As for your second question, Villa have a lot of black outfield players but no goalkeeper so that rules them out. The two strongest teams I came up with were Wigan's 4-3-3 against Tottenham's 4-5-1. Wigan: Kingson, Melchiot, Boyce, Bramble, Figueroa, N'Zogbia, Diame, Thomas, Moses, Scotland, Rodallega. Spurs: Gomes, Kaboul, King, Bassong, Assou-Ekotto, Huddlestone, Jenas, Palacios, Lennon, Dos Santos, Defoe.
Chris: Hello Again! Just checked the site, and when I read about the captains in Europe, I immediately thought of David Platt. I’m sure he captained Juve and Sampdoria during his spell in Italy? If not, then who did during his spells at those clubs? I remember Antonio Conte being a leader in the Juve team at the time.
The Gaffer says: Platt never actually played in the Champions League while in Italy, although did win the Uefa Cup with Juventus. Roberto Baggio was captain at the time. Conte took the armband in 1996.
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Tuesday 16 March
Alan, Bury St Edmunds: When Liverpool won the double back in 1986, Everton were runners-up in both. How many other teams have "lost" the double, if any?
The Gaffer says: Runners-up in both the league and FA Cup in the same season were Arsenal in 1932, Wolves in 1939, Burnley in 1962, Leeds in 1965 and 1970, Everton in 1986, Man Utd in 1995 and Arsenal in 2001.
Edward: Is the mother of Nuno Miguel Prata Coelho of FC Porto (currently on loan to Academica) a New Zealander? If so he could potentially join New Zealand at the World Cup in South Africa?
The Gaffer says: His mother is of New Zealand descent, so he could play for the Kiwis. The midfielder has represented Portugal at U21 level but is yet to win a full cap.
Paul: I have a cake on a question with a work mate. He said the winner of the Europa League goes right into the Champions League. I said they don't. Can you help please?
The Gaffer says: Your mate is wrong. The winners of the Europa League will be guaranteed a place in the group stages of next season's competition, but will not qualify for a Champions League spot. So for example, if Liverpool were to win the Europa League but finish outside of the top four in the Premier League, they would not be playing Champions League football next season. Enjoy your cake.
Sam: Name 10 players who have played for two of the traditional top-four clubs in the Premier League and a Spanish team?
The Gaffer says: I answered this one a couple of months ago but could only find seven: Jermaine Pennant, Lassana Diarra, Bolo Zenden, Nicolas Anelka, Mark Hughes, Emmanuel Petit, Michael Owen. Let me know if you know of the other three...
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Monday 15 March
San London: Who has scored the most goals in La Liga this season Gaff?
The Gaffer says: David Villa and Lionel Messi are equal top scorers in La Liga this season with 17 apiece. Then comes Gonzalo Higuain with 16, followed by his Real Madrid team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo with 13. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Roberto Soldado come next with 12.
Tom Lambert: Hi Gaff, I just wanted to know how many goals have been scored so far this season in the Premier League?
The Gaffer says: According to my maths, it's 807. Arsenal have scored most, with 71, followed by Man Utd's 70 and Chelsea's 69. Then come Manchester City and Tottenham on 53, followed by Everton on 46 and Liverpool on 45.
Old Man Mac: Are there any records for fastest runners to have played professionally? I remember watching Supermac many moons ago; he had some pace given his liking of the odd Jamesons. As we all do. Cheers.
The Gaffer says: The quickest player I've seen in recent years is Edgar Alvarez, who now plays for Bari. The Honduran had a spell at AS Roma, where he displayed blistering pace but not a great deal of quality on the ball. The Russian Vladimir Bystrov is another speedster, whose surname means 'fast' in English. He now plays for Zenit St Petersburg and is generally regarded as the quickest player in Europe.
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Check out much more trivia in the Ask The Gaffer archives >>>
