The Decade Series Is Back! It's time for us to begin the countdown of the Top 10 Games of the Decade. Y2 and I deliberated the best way to do this countdown, and after months of tough negotiations we have decided to pick our Game of the Decade in 10 different sports. We'll go from the NFL to the NBA to College Sports to the Olympics. For each game we'll profile the facts and go with the old fashioned Who, What, Where, When, Why and How. But we start our countdown with the beautiful game... and that night in Istanbul.
What: Champions League Final
Where: Ataturk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul
When: May 25, 2005
How: This game featured two of the most successful teams in European club football. Milan were in their 2nd final in 3 years, having won the Champions League 6 times. Liverpool, 4 time champions, were in their first CL final since the Heysel Stadium Disaster of 1985. The significance of their first appearance since that tragedy can't be underestimated. Milan were a substantial favorite coming into the game. The Rossoneri were 2nd in Serie A and had advanced to the final by beating PSV in the semis. Liverpool had struggled all season (they finished outside the Top 4 in the EPL) and a win in the final might have been their only ticket to appearing in the Champions League the following year. In fact, they only made the knockout round thanks to heroics from captain Steven Gerrard in their last group game against Olympiacos. Needing a goal in the final minutes, this happened...
And that was leading up to a final regarded as The Miracle in Istanbul. AC Milan started quickly with a goal from captain Paolo Maldini in the 1st minute, and they kept scoring. Striker Hernan Crespo then scored 2 more to give Milan a 3-0 lead going into the break. No team had ever come back from such a margin to win a European Cup Final. Liverpool were left for dead. And then, the comeback started. Gerrard, the inspirational leader, got it going with a 54' goal off of a header. Then 2 minutes later Vladimir Smicer scored and the drama was on. 4 minutes later, Gerrard won a penalty. Xabi Alonso (wow, is he missed) took the penalty and somehow scored after his own rebound. Liverpool amazingly scored 3 goals in 6 minutes after being completely left for dead.
The game seemed destined for a penalty shootout. Reds GK Jerzy Dudek made a huge double save on mega-striker Andriy Shevchenko and after extra-time, PKs would decide the winner of the greatest final in European club soccer history. Destiny was now firmly entrenched in the Liverpool camp. Dudek's bizarre wacky waving inflatable arm-flailing tube man tactics (cheap Family Guy reference) led to a miss and a save on 2 of the first 3 penalties. After 3 successes for Liverpool, Dudek saved Shevchenko's penalty and won the Champions League Trophy for Liverpool. Here's the highlights...
Why: Well, if you're considered by many to be the greatest game in the history of the world's most popular sport... that's saying something. This one has some personal significance for me though. It was this game that made me a fan of soccer. I had watched a few World Cup games, but never more than that. Soccer was for sissies and was boring, I mean come on! Where were all the goals? Where's the action? I was a typical meatheaded American sports fan where the beautiful game was concerned.
But, soccer was a big hit where we went to school at Ohio Wesleyan. There's a large international community and the men's soccer team (which we'll cover in the NCAA D3 Tournament on Sunday) was the school's athletic centerpiece. I watched a little Champions League on ESPN2 just to check it out (European soccer on ESPN?? treasonous!) and sat down to watch a full club soccer game for the first time for the Final. Good choice, eh? Even as it was 3-0 at halftime, there was something about that Liverpool team and their captain that interested me, I was hoping Liverpool could at least make a game of it, although I knew that a comeback would never happen. Let's face it, Frank Reich wasn't in red that day and this was soccer, but Stevie G was.
And then, the comeback happened... and I was completely enthralled with a soccer game, and the heroics of Steven Gerrard. What was happening to me?? By the end of the penalty shootout I was jumping for joy that Liverpool had done the impossible and completed one of the most remarkable comebacks in the history of sports. Everything about that game seemed right for me, and I became a soccer fan that day. My love for soccer, and for Liverpool was only enhanced in next year's FA Cup Final when Gerrard produced more heroics in a Liverpool PK win after a 3-3 draw with the greatest goal I have ever seen...
Ever since, I've been converted to a soccer fan, and I have Liverpool and the 2005 Champions League Final to thank.
Others Considered:
2006 World Cup Final - Italy 1 France 1 (Italy wins 5-3 on penalties)
2006 FA Cup Final - Liverpool 3 West Ham 3 (Liverpool wins 3-1 on penalties)
2008 Euro Semifinal - Germany 3 Turkey 2
2009 EPL - Arsenal 4 Liverpool 4
Next up, we'll stay on the world stage with our Olympic Event of the Decade, and we'll take a look at some less happier times for Liverpool at the moment... maybe I should have done the bad news first... oh well, see you next time!
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