Journalist and Liverpool fan, Ty Marshall, attended some memorable games during his team’s route to Champions League glory in 2005. Here, he recalls the controversial semi-final that put the reds in the now infamous Istanbul final…
For a Liverpool fan who was six the last time the League Championship resided at Anfield, my choice of memorable nights is considerably less than that of those a generation ago.
Most fans from my era will plump for the Champions League final in Istanbul in 2005 as their ‘I was there’ moment, and indeed I was there, but for me the semi-final success against Chelsea holds memories just as dear.
It is worth remembering just how distant from the pinnacle of the European game we were at the start of that season.
We were beaten at home by AK Graz in the last qualifier, but went through thanks to a 2-0 win in Austria.
In the group stage we were beaten at Olympiakos and Monaco, and only drew at home to Deportivo, and in the league we finished 5th, below Everton. Everton!
But with nine minutes remaining of the final group game against Olympiakos, and two goals needed to progress, everything changed.
In the knockout stages Bayer Leverkusen and Juventus were put to the sword at Anfield, but when Chelsea arrived in the semi-final, we were still being written off.
A creditable 0-0 draw at Stamford Bridge seemed to hold no weight as pundits queued to write us off.
Chelsea were stunned at the atmosphere inside the ground that night, the Kop was rocking from 45 minutes before the kick-off, and it shook John Terry and co as well.
I have never experienced a louder or more intimidating atmosphere at a football ground than the evening of May 3, 2005, and I doubt I ever will. It is by far my finest night on the Kop.
If the away side thought it couldn’t get any louder, then they were wrong. When Luis Garcia poked the ball over the line after just three minutes I think the whole of the North West must have shook, it was an electrifying moment.
It has to be said that the game as a spectacle for an impassionate neutral wasn’t up to much, but I was no impassionate neutral, I was high on a cocktail of fear, delirium and hope (and a little bit of Stella).
I spent much of the next 87 minutes trying not to look, as the clock ticked, inexplicably slowly, on, the agony became worse, one goal for Chelsea and they would be going through.
And then came the moment that aged every Liverpool fan by at least a decade.
Deep into six minutes of injury time, the ball fell at the feet of Eidur Gudjohnsen in front of the Kop, around six yards out, with Jerzy Dudek in no man’s land. Gudjohnsen drove the ball across goal and it flew inches wide. Time has never passed so slowly, those milliseconds as the ball flew towards goal felt like hours.
Moments later the final whistle blew and Anfield erupted, I remember hugging a woman stood next to me who must have been in her 60s, the feeling of joy, relief, pride and excitement was like nothing I’ve ever known before.
The ground was still full 15 minutes later as we celebrated what had seemed impossible back in August.
Liverpool were in the European Cup final, again.
One Match Ban 