Liverpool had nothing short of an excellent season last year. Aside from missing out on the Premier League trophy by a single point, the Reds still finished with domestic results usually worthy of a title. Second place is not bad.
Yet Liverpool’s greatest success came in the realms of European football. They are, as you are well aware, the 2018/19 European Champions League winners, after reaching the final for the second year in a row. Let’s take a look back at their road to European champions.
Group Stages
Liverpool were drawn in one of the season’s ‘Groups of Death’, with Napoli, Red Star Belgrade and the dreaded Paris Saint Germain standing in their way.
The first game of the group stages was full of controversy, but ultimately Liverpool walked away with a deserved 3-2 win over PSG, a stoppage time goal from Firmino granting them three points and an early boost of confidence.
That’s not to the say the group stages were going to be easy. Liverpool then suffered a 1-0 defeat away at Napoli. What followed was a 4-0 win over Red Star, and it looked like the Reds were back on track. They weren’t.
A 2-0 loss in their return game against Red Star, and then a 2-1 defeat at the hands of PSG, saw Liverpool slide down to third place and at risk of being relegated to the Europa League. It all rested in the final game against Napoli, a game which Liverpool had to win. Thankfully, Salah pulled it out of the bag, with keeper Alisson showing that he was well worth the money by making that incredible save in the closing minutes to seal a 1-0 victory.
It wasn’t smooth, it wasn’t easy, but Liverpool were through to the knockouts.
Knockout Stages
The round of 16 was played against Bayern Munich, a strong opposition who would eventually go on to win the Bundesliga. Despite being in the middle of a poor domestic run, and at the mercy of injuries, Liverpool played a solid game at Anfield, but couldn’t quite secure the win. The first leg ended 0-0.
Away at Munich, Mane scored in the 26th minute and late on in the 86th minute, with Van Dijk claiming one in between. Munich’s only joy came from a Matip own goal.
The semi-finals will perhaps go down as one of the greatest comebacks of all time, and also the greatest moments in the history of Anfield. After suffering a 3-0 defeat in the away leg, Liverpool came back to stun the world with a 4-0 win in the second leg over Barcelona.
Even without Firmino, and with Salah missing in the second game, Liverpool managed to overwhelm the La Liga legends.
European Glory
All that was left was for Liverpool to win the final and walk home with European football’s most coveted prize. It felt like the hardest work was done and, in a way, it was. Tottenham were in the midst of their own breakthroughs and historic moments, but in the end they were no match for Liverpool.
A Salah penalty after two minutes broke the deadlock early, and Alisson played an excellent game to keep out any chances that Spurs came back with. A late finisher from Origi, and Liverpool had done it! European Champions League winners 2018/19.
There was only one prize left to claim. Liverpool faced Chelsea in the Super Cup and came out on top after a narrow victory. Chelsea scored first, Mane equalised and both teams got a goal each in extra time. It was a close penalty shoot-out that left Liverpool as the ultimate European champions!
This Season
This season, Liverpool look on track to put in another solid performance. They have huge potential to claim the Premier League title, and are currently top of their group in the UEFA Champions League. Will this year be their year for domestic glory? Can they also defend their European championships?