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REDS AROUND THE WORLD: GHANA
Aristo Dotse, Ghana 23 December 2008
This week we hear how 26-year-old sports journalist Aristo Dotse went from watching weekly highlights on TV to helping run the supporters' club in Ghana and staging a high-profile welcome for his boyhood hero. 
Others may never agree, but for me there is no sweeter thing than being a Liverpool fan. The cabinet-load of trophies helps, but our rich history and unique traditions make this club different from any other.
One of my first memories from when I was growing up in a suburb near Ghana's capital city, Accra, consists of seeing John Barnes storming up the wing and terrorising opposition defences in a red shirt.
As one of the first black sportsmen to appear on Ghanaian TV showing off his amazing skills, Barnes was an inspiration to many people over here. With him putting in balls for the unstoppable Ian Rush, week in, week out, pretty much everyone in Ghana was hooked on Liverpool during the eighties.
Memories of heroes like Bruce Grobbelaar, Peter Beardsley, Steve Nicol and John Aldridge will linger on for those who were privileged enough to see the Reds' exploits during that time.
But that doesn't mean that all Liverpool fans over here are of a certain age - far from it. The miracle of Istanbul in 2005 and our glorious run to the Champions League final in 2007 have played their part in ensuring there are many kids over here proudly wearing the red of Liverpool.
My relatives are amazed about how much I love the Reds. Like me, they are all fans, but my Liverpool obsession can be a bit too much for them - so much so that my mum has been known to complain about it from time to time.
With so many fans living here, it seemed only right that we had our very own supporters' club. It was a dream come true for me to co-found the official Ghana Branch in November 2002, and since then our club has grown to over 300 members.
Following Liverpool from afar can be a real headache at times. I used to rely on a weekly TV show called 'Big League Soccer', but there were never any live matches.
But things are so much easier these days. With the official website's coverage of matches along with a host of other media outlets, supporting Liverpool is now a much more enjoyable experience and the Reds' popularity continues to grow over here.
Luckily there is no time difference between Ghana and the UK, so we can watch most matches at the same time as you in England.
Very few of us at the Ghana Branch have been lucky enough to see the Reds up close at Anfield, but to celebrate winning the league in Liverpool is one dream we all hope to realise very soon.
There are so many supporters in Africa - it would be fantastic if the players visited for a pre-season tour.
I know too well that Liverpool fans from across Ghana and many parts of Africa, especially nearby west African countries like Nigeria, Togo, Ivory Coast, Benin, Mali and Sierra Leone, would converge in Accra for what could only be described as a 'Liverpool get-together'.
But it was fantastic to get a special message from Rafa Benitez at our supporters' club's official inauguration in July 2005. I made sure his words were carried in Ghana's biggest, state-owned newspaper 'The Daily Graphic'. Eeryone was so happy to be recognised by our manager.
And things got even better last year when my boyhood hero visited Ghana to attend an awards ceremony for sports journalists as a special guest.
All of us at the supporters' club went to Accra airport to give the great man himself John Barnes a warm Ghana welcome. The whole area was taken over by Barnes mania.
After the awards ceremony, which featured a two-hour video special about the great Liverpool sides of the eighties, Barnes was presented with a beautiful African carving and everyone at the Ghana Branch got to meet the great man. It was a very special evening.
It always amazes me that even though we are so far away from where all the action takes place, so many people over here eat, drink and sleep Liverpool - they are all die-hard Reds. For this group of fans, a Liverpool defeat is something else. It simply spoils the day.
Our Premier League defeat to Tottenham Hotpsur this season really left me speechless - I was gutted about it.
As the secretary to a social club in our community, I had to reluctantly skip the closing stages of the game to attend a meeting, at which time the score 1-1. I left the meeting and felt safe in the knowledge that the game would at least end in a draw.
But I was aghast when a fellow Red came to whisper to me we had lost. I was well and truly shocked and couldn't focus on the rest of the meeting. Everyone there realised something was wrong as my mood and expression instantly changed. I had to confess to them how it was a result of Liverpool's defeat. But that's how it can be when you care so passionately about something.
With the amount of Reds continuing to grow each season and our links to the club improving all the time, I know that everyone in the Ghana Branch will 'Never Walk Alone'.
Aristo Dotse, Ghana 23 December 2008
This week we hear how 26-year-old sports journalist Aristo Dotse went from watching weekly highlights on TV to helping run the supporters' club in Ghana and staging a high-profile welcome for his boyhood hero. Others may never agree, but for me there is no sweeter thing than being a Liverpool fan. The cabinet-load of trophies helps, but our rich history and unique traditions make this club different from any other.
One of my first memories from when I was growing up in a suburb near Ghana's capital city, Accra, consists of seeing John Barnes storming up the wing and terrorising opposition defences in a red shirt.
As one of the first black sportsmen to appear on Ghanaian TV showing off his amazing skills, Barnes was an inspiration to many people over here. With him putting in balls for the unstoppable Ian Rush, week in, week out, pretty much everyone in Ghana was hooked on Liverpool during the eighties.
Memories of heroes like Bruce Grobbelaar, Peter Beardsley, Steve Nicol and John Aldridge will linger on for those who were privileged enough to see the Reds' exploits during that time.
But that doesn't mean that all Liverpool fans over here are of a certain age - far from it. The miracle of Istanbul in 2005 and our glorious run to the Champions League final in 2007 have played their part in ensuring there are many kids over here proudly wearing the red of Liverpool.
My relatives are amazed about how much I love the Reds. Like me, they are all fans, but my Liverpool obsession can be a bit too much for them - so much so that my mum has been known to complain about it from time to time.
With so many fans living here, it seemed only right that we had our very own supporters' club. It was a dream come true for me to co-found the official Ghana Branch in November 2002, and since then our club has grown to over 300 members.
Following Liverpool from afar can be a real headache at times. I used to rely on a weekly TV show called 'Big League Soccer', but there were never any live matches.
But things are so much easier these days. With the official website's coverage of matches along with a host of other media outlets, supporting Liverpool is now a much more enjoyable experience and the Reds' popularity continues to grow over here.
Luckily there is no time difference between Ghana and the UK, so we can watch most matches at the same time as you in England.
Very few of us at the Ghana Branch have been lucky enough to see the Reds up close at Anfield, but to celebrate winning the league in Liverpool is one dream we all hope to realise very soon.
There are so many supporters in Africa - it would be fantastic if the players visited for a pre-season tour.
I know too well that Liverpool fans from across Ghana and many parts of Africa, especially nearby west African countries like Nigeria, Togo, Ivory Coast, Benin, Mali and Sierra Leone, would converge in Accra for what could only be described as a 'Liverpool get-together'.
But it was fantastic to get a special message from Rafa Benitez at our supporters' club's official inauguration in July 2005. I made sure his words were carried in Ghana's biggest, state-owned newspaper 'The Daily Graphic'. Eeryone was so happy to be recognised by our manager.
And things got even better last year when my boyhood hero visited Ghana to attend an awards ceremony for sports journalists as a special guest.
All of us at the supporters' club went to Accra airport to give the great man himself John Barnes a warm Ghana welcome. The whole area was taken over by Barnes mania.
After the awards ceremony, which featured a two-hour video special about the great Liverpool sides of the eighties, Barnes was presented with a beautiful African carving and everyone at the Ghana Branch got to meet the great man. It was a very special evening.
It always amazes me that even though we are so far away from where all the action takes place, so many people over here eat, drink and sleep Liverpool - they are all die-hard Reds. For this group of fans, a Liverpool defeat is something else. It simply spoils the day.
Our Premier League defeat to Tottenham Hotpsur this season really left me speechless - I was gutted about it.
As the secretary to a social club in our community, I had to reluctantly skip the closing stages of the game to attend a meeting, at which time the score 1-1. I left the meeting and felt safe in the knowledge that the game would at least end in a draw.
But I was aghast when a fellow Red came to whisper to me we had lost. I was well and truly shocked and couldn't focus on the rest of the meeting. Everyone there realised something was wrong as my mood and expression instantly changed. I had to confess to them how it was a result of Liverpool's defeat. But that's how it can be when you care so passionately about something.
With the amount of Reds continuing to grow each season and our links to the club improving all the time, I know that everyone in the Ghana Branch will 'Never Walk Alone'.