following dalglish's departure, redknapp was part of a transitional liverpool team under graeme souness. he spent most of his first two-and-a-half years as a substitute or in the reserves, missing the 1992 fa cup final triumph and only becoming a regular first-team player in the 1993–94 season, at the expense of mark walters. at this time, redknapp had also become one of the mass-marketed poster boy icons of the newly developing fa premier league where, alongside other photogenic young players like manchester united players ryan giggs and lee sharpe, he was used ceaselessly in commercials, advertising spots and for the league's promotional purposes in merchandising and sales, with the result being that football stars had become idols on par with rock stars and pop stars, by and around the mid to late 1990s.