@James_Carroll84
When LFCTV staff completed an interview with Luis Suarez in Barcelona earlier this year, the former Liverpool striker filed a simple request.
As the camera crew began to derig their setup, the Uruguayan shared a message intended for two significant individuals on Merseyside.
âTell Carol and Caroline I said hello.â
Suarez was referring to the long-serving duo that form part of Melwoodâs kitchen team, whose force of personality and kind-hearted nature have endeared them to all who walk through the canteen's double doors at the training ground.
Carol Farrell and Caroline Guest have both been employed at the West Derby complex for 13 years, with their partnership starting in 2004-05.
âI worked up at Anfield for a couple of years and then they asked me to come down here because a lady who worked here was retiring, so they wanted me to take over from her temporarily,â explains Carol. âAfter that. They asked me if I wanted to stay, so I stayed and here I am!â
Such was the bond Suarez struck up with the pair during his three-and-a-half years at the club, he returned to Melwood in March 2016 to catch up with them, in the company of his Liverpool-born children, Delfina and Benjamin.
âIt was lovely when he came back to see us, we loved it,â Caroline admits. âIt was such a big surprise for us to see him, and for him to come back to see us meant so much.
âEven though his English wasnât very good at times, he used to torment us when he was here!â Carol adds: âHe is a lovely, lovely lad. I loved him to pieces. He was so down to earth, weâd always have a laugh and a joke with him.
âIt was brilliant when he came to visit, especially with him bringing his kids because theyâd grown up so much. We didnât know Beni too well because he was only a baby when Luis left, so to see him was really good.â
Suarez is not alone in his appreciation and admiration for the twosome.
Both were recently special guests at the unveiling of the Kenny Dalglish Stand â by personal invitation of The King himself â while Carol joined Steven Gerrard on the red carpet at the LFC Playersâ Awards at Anfield back in May.
âWe miss him,â is the instant, synchronised response at the mention of the ex-captain's name.
Those who have experienced the cafeteria area have undoubtedly witnessed Carol and Caroline diligently carry out their duties as they fuss over the welfare and comfort of others.
âItâs always a busy day here,â explains Carol. âThereâs no typical day, really. Itâs usually an 8am start and we finish when we finish. Itâs usually 4pm, but it all depends on the training schedule and when the lads come up. If theyâre training late, weâll work shifts.
âSometimes some of the players have physio and stuff downstairs, so we wait for them to come up. Itâs really busy, especially when we have visitors here, too.
âItâs our job to put all the breakfast stuff out as soon as we come in. We make sure the fridges are all filled up. We take the ladsâ breakfast orders and we tell the kitchen and the chefs. Then weâll bring it out to them.
âAnd we make sure they donât eat too much as well â we shout at them if they eat too much!â
Such attention isnât reserved only for players and members of Liverpoolâs football staff â visitors are also welcomed with warmth.
When South African Olympic world-record holder and lifelong Reds fan Wayde van Niekerk paid a special visit to Melwood last Christmas with his partner and best friend, the trio were doted upon.
âJust make sure when you come back youâve won us another gold medal,â was all that was asked in return of the sprinter as he bid farewell that afternoon.
Indeed, during this writerâs early days in a role with LFC, a sizeable plate of food was hand-delivered to an office within the facility after Carol and Caroline had learned an interview had been delayed quite significantly, spilling into early evening.
They go out of their way to ensure the experience of being at Melwood is enveloped with cheerfulness.
Carol says: âWe love all the different things that happen here. When children come to visit us though the Foundation and the charities, we love being a part of it and making a big fuss over them.
âItâs nice to get letters back from them; we get lovely letters back from them to thank us. We always tell them and their families to write to us and let us know how they are doing once theyâve finished their visits here.â
Caroline adds: âEveryone who walks through the doors here gets treated the same by us, it doesnât matter who they are â whether theyâre the manager, captain, managing director or whatever, theyâre all treated the same. Staff, visitors, guests - everyone.â
That was evident on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlainâs first day at Melwood in September, when our exclusive behind-the-scenes video captured the new signing interacting with Carol and Caroline for the first time.
The clip was a hit on social media and beyond, with supporters eager to know more about the two straight-talking, no-nonsense members of staff conversing with Liverpool's No.21.
âI found out because my son Andrew phoned me,â reveals Caroline. âHe rang me and said, âMum⌠youâve done it again, havenât you?â I said, âdone what?â He says, âyouâve done it again⌠youâre on the blooming telly again!â
âI was so embarrassed! I was thinking, âoh, God!â watching it back.â
âEveryone was coming in and saying, âeh you two, getting in on another video again are you?ââ adds Carol with a laugh. âBut everyone was saying how good it was, really natural with Alex when he walked in, but thatâs how we are with all of the lads and everyone who comes in here. We like to treat everyone the same.
âI think weâll have to get ourselves an agent!â
The superstar pairing of the canteen also act as the social directors, promoting a sense of camaraderie around the pool and table tennis tables within the dining area.
Take Emre Canâs arrival in England in 2014, for example.
âWhen the likes of Emre first come in, he was very quiet and he used to just sit," Carol recalls. "The lads would be playing on the pool table or whatever, so Iâd go over and say to them, âgo and get the lad up to play with you!â Emre would look and Iâd say, âwell, canât you play? Get up and these will teach you.â
âNow Emre is bringing other lads into the group to involve them. When they first come in, we like to involve them with the other players â we donât like to see anyone sat on their own.â
Caroline adds: âIf thereâs a new player comes in, we make sure the rest of the lads incorporate him. Especially if theyâve come from another country. It can be hard for them, so weâre like their mothers because we like to look after them and make sure theyâre alright.
âTheyâre only young men and to come to a new country where they donât know anyone, and sometimes canât speak English, we feel itâs important to try and make them feel at home because they are here eight or nine hours a day.â
Itâs not all smiles for Carol and Caroline, though. There can be tears, too.
Most recently in the summer when they discovered Lucas Leiva would be leaving Liverpool after a decade having agreed a move to Lazio.
âI was so upset when he went,â Caroline. âHe was a baby when he come, he was only 20 when he arrived here and he grew into a man while he was here. His family and his wife were lovely, lovely people.
âHe came into the dining room and it was a busy day in here, especially because Carol was off that day. He called me over and said, âIâm leavingâ. I said, âwhat? No youâre not!â And that was it then, I had to go into the back because I burst out crying. Even now I am filling up because was such a lovely person.â
Carol chips in: âCaroline phoned me up one day and said, âguess what? Lucas has goneâ.
âI couldnât stop crying - I didnât think Iâd ever get that upset about anyone leaving, but he was here for 10 years. When his wife went away anywhere, sheâd say to us, âmake sure you look after my Lucas!â Weâd make him his dinner to take home for in the evening.
âWhen he came back in with his family to say âta-raâ⌠oh, I sobbed. I couldnât stop. He told me to stop, but I just couldnât stop crying because he was leaving us.
âI havenât spoken to him since he left, but weâve got his phone number. I hope he hasnât bin-bagged us for two Italian women!â
Nevertheless, such memories and friendships made over the last 13 years are ones they treasure.
âPepe Reina was great with us, he loved a laugh and a joke,â recalls Caroline. âMascherano was lovely, always telling me to have a sing-song with him,â adds Carol.
Even now, new bonds are continually being forged: âWe have a laugh with JĂźrgen when he comes in for his dinnerâŚwe donât have a laugh with him when he comes in after weâve got beat, though!â jokes Carol.
So how do these close relationships affect their emotions on matchdays?
For the only time during the 25-minute conversation, the responses are conflicting.
âI donât watch them; I never watch them because my nerves go to pieces,â reveals Carol.
âI just canât watch them. I went all the way to Istanbul and stayed under the stand and never came out. I felt ill, so I ran downstairs, went in the toilet and did nothing but say my prayers until the end. I was absolutely sick. I couldnât come back up and watch it.â
By contrast, Caroline says: âI will watch them, but I was never a big Liverpool or football supporter before I came here.
âNow Jimmy, my husband, will say to me, âI canât believe how much youâve changed!â because heâd be watching the game on his own, but when I started here I started watching with him. Now Iâm shouting along with him!
âItâs because you get to know everyone. I also like to watch other games to see the old players weâve had here and see how theyâre getting along now.â
After a decade of working alongside each other, perhaps the strongest bond Carol and Caroline hold is with each other.
âWeâve been very good together, very good. We donât bicker⌠unless weâre tired and Iâll go, âmove!ââ jokes Carol. âBut in all seriousness, we never argue or anything; we know what each other has to do and we just do it.â
Itâs a sentiment backed up by Caroline, who says: âI know when Carol is tired because she gets the giggles - and Iâll go the other way!
âIf I am doing one thing, sheâll go and do another. We work that way â we know what each other is doing, so the jobs get done quickly and itâs a lot easier for us.
âItâs great fun working here, itâs a home from home for us. Itâs a great environment, thereâs always banter and laughs.
âThe whole job is lovely. I have loved it ever since day one.â
Throughout the course of this interview, many names past and present were mentioned and spoken of in glowing terms, so there was just one final natural question to pose before the conclusion: just who has been the favourite over the years?
âTheyâre all our favourites, all of them,â is Carolineâs fast and firm response. âWe donât have a single favourite.â
Carol continues, with her trademark humour: âThe players will also say to us, âam I your favourite?â and Iâll go, âno, Iâve got 20-odd favourites here!â
âEveryone is the same and thereâs no difference in our eyes; as long as they know weâre definitely the mothers here, so theyâll do as theyâre told and there is no messing around here, right?â
http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/first-team/282976-btb-a-message-from-luis-suarez-tears-for-lucas-and-jokes-with-JĂźrgen