Recently, I made a blog post referring to a section I edited on a Wikipedia page about the 2019 Champions League Final. The section was titled "Post-Match" and had facts about the aftermath of the game such as, fan reactions, celebrations, and overall club records. I wanted to check and see if the edit that I had made to the section had been revised or if my changes were still there. I was surprised to find that my edit was no longer there.
Liverpool won their sixth European Cup and their second of the Champions League era.[94] The club surpassed Barcelona and Bayern Munich, each with five titles, and ranks third behind Real Madrid (13) and Milan (7) for overall European titles.[101] Defender Virgil van Dijk was named the man of the match by UEFA for his leadership and interventions to break up Tottenham's attacks.[1] Liverpool will play Chelsea, the winners of the Europa League, in the 2019 UEFA Super Cup.[102] They will also take part in the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup.[103]
Liverpool returned to England the day after the final, and celebrated their victory by parading the trophy around Liverpool in an open-top double-decker bus. The parade began at Allerton Maze and continued for 8 miles (13 kilometres) towards the city centre, ending on the Liverpool Strand.[104][105] Police estimated the number of supporters to be approximately 750,000, with the number of people lining the route causing the parade to last an additional two hours.[105][106]
Originally, I had added a couple sentences to the last paragraph on this section explaining how two of Liverpool's star attackers became the first players from their home countries to win the tournament. I thought that my addition was moved to a different section at first, since perhaps someone else thought it belonged in a more appropriate place, however, it has been deleted from the page entirely. If you were to read the page, you would see a number of different statistics and facts being listed. This final had many "firsts" to it, like new teams and managers being featured, and a new manager winning it. So, as to why another "first" was removed I am not sure but it does disappoint me.
On November 29, 1998, Liverpool F.C. changed forever. It was a home game at Anfield against a team called Blackburn Rovers. It was the 89th minute and the score was 2-0 in favor to Liverpool. The game was done and dusted. It would be a Liverpool victory with only a minute left plus stoppage time. As any manager would do in this scenario, they would put on a substitute in order to eat up some time on the clock. The type of player that would come as a late substitute truly did not matter since all that had to be done was to wait for the referee to blow his whistle.
So, the manager of Liverpool at the time, Gérard Houllier, went to his bench and selected a young boy named Steven Gerrard. He was only seventeen, with a clean shaven face and a long sleeve shirt, to keep him warm from the harsh English winter. Gerrard was a local boy from Liverpool and joined the club's academy system at the age of eight. His connection to club woven into his family as well, as his cousin lost his life in the Hillsborough Disaster. He was now about to live the dream, play at home under the lights for his boyhood club. He made his way onto the pitch and played for only a couple of minutes before the game ended. He obviously could not make any impact on the game since there was basically no time left but little did the everyone know that in the following years he would make some of the biggest impacts on the club that they had ever witnessed.
Flash forward to 2003 and Gerrard was now the captain of the club and a starter. He was regularly contributing to the attack, scoring, assisting, creating chances and also playing his part on defense by blocking shots and breaking up plays before they became dangerous. These were key traits of an all around midfielder, a rare type of player seen in the game due to the nonstop work that is required. He was a rising star and was soon named PFA Young Player of the Year. Now, at the age of 23, Gerrard was attracting attention from other clubs around the world. He was still young enough to have time to hit his peak performance levels but was mature enough to take on the duty of a leader and he was a key asset to any team in need of a midfielder. He also earned the nickname "Captain Fantastic" since he could it all on the pitch.
The following year, Liverpool underperformed and the same manager that gave Gerrard his start, was fired from his role. Rumors started to swirl as if the young captain would stay at the club or go on to make more money for basically any team of his choice (many teams proposed offers to him to come and play for them). One of the front runners in the race to get his Gerrard's signature on a contract was Chelsea F.C., a club from London that had the hottest manager in the world, Jose Mourinho, and a billionaire owner that was dumping huge amounts of money into the club, letting them purchase the best players and they were the favorites to win trophies. When the 2004/05 season started Gerrard was still at Liverpool but many believed that he wouldn't be by the time to season was over and if not, then he would certainly be gone when the season ended. Liverpool also had a new manager, Rafa Benítez, who had already stated that he was going to be getting rid of a lot of players and bring in new ones. Gerrard was obviously the first name that everyone figured would leave.
From a fan perspective it was an absolute nightmare. Here, you had a boy that loved the club and cherished everything about it work his way up and become one of the best home grown talents ever. Then, the team starts to fall in the league, causing frustration and fear for what the future would hold and to make things worse, that boy is all but set to leave. Fans flipped out, burned their jersey's with Gerrard's name on it in the streets of Liverpool. They felt betrayed and dishonored.
However, not all hope was lost for Liverpool's season since they had a very good run in the Champions League. The tournament was still in the group stage phase but Liverpool needed a win in order to progress to the knockout rounds. It was early December 2004 at Anfield and it was 2-1 in favor of Liverpool against Greek side Olympiakos. Due to the goal differential rule for the group stage phase, Liverpool needed one more goal to advance. Sometimes, pictures do a better job of telling the story... Gerrard scored the game winner with a long ranged shot from outside the box. It was this goal that sent Liverpool through to the knockout stage and they would eventually progress all the way to the final.
The final that year took place in Istanbul, Turkey and Liverpool had to take on quite possibly the greatest team to date, A.C. Milan. The Italian team was remarkable. They had the best defenders, midfielders, and attackers on the planet. Their substitute bench was filled with stars too. They were the definition of the soccer term "world class." Liverpool had a couple of above average players and a couple of world class players, one of them being Gerrard. So, going into the game Liverpool were the underdogs. The game would require Liverpool to be absolutely perfect from the first whistle to the last. No mistakes could happen and they would have to take their chances as they came. Yet, in the first minute, Liverpool were already losing 1-0. The first half was an absolute disaster and Liverpool could not cope with what Milan was producing on the field. It was men against boys. By halftime, Milan had scored two more times to make it 3-0. Honestly, the game was over. No one comes back down from three goals to even tie a game, let alone win it, especially when the teams are so far apart quality wise. The Liverpool players even said that coming out for the second half the objective was to just keep the game from getting worse. Stop the public embarrassment that was being broadcast live to the whole world.
Suddenly, in the 54th minute, a cross came into the Milan box and a red shirt rose up to head the ball. It was Gerrard and now the ball was in the back of the net. It was 3-1 and a goal like that is usually not celebrated because two goals are still needed. Liverpool picked the ball up out of the net and ran back to their half to wait for Milan to reset the game. On the way back, Gerrard was pumping his arms in the air at the Liverpool fans, rallying them. Something was happening. Two minutes later, Liverpool scored again, 3-2. Game on. It was happening and no one could believe it. Four minutes later Gerrard bursted through the Milan defense and was clear on goal but a Milan defender pulled him down and Gerrard rightly went to ground. A penalty was called for Liverpool and they now had a chance to tie it. Xabi Alonso, one of Liverpool's midfielders, stepped up to take the penalty. Before he took it, the camera cut to his face and he looked nervous, swallowing hard and peering around his shoulders as cameras flashed and fans booed to get in his head. The whistle blew and he stepped forward and took a great shot, hard, low and to left corner but it was saved. He did what they teach you when you're young and followed up his shot. He got to it before the keeper could and smashed it to the roof of the net, 3-3. Clive Tyldesley, one of many commentators calling the game that historic night, shouted, "Mission impossible, is accomplished!" as the ball went in. The game stayed tied for the rest of the match and even after extra time. Therefore, the game went to a penalty shootout where Liverpool won. The game is considered by many to be the greatest that was ever played and is constantly ranked as one of the best comebacks of all time. All of it was started by Gerrard. From the goal scored in December, to the first goal in the final and winning the penalty for his team to tie it, he was the reason. In the images below you can see him with the fans, lifting the trophy, and celebrating the win. If you are wondering what the red wristband is on his right wrist, it reads "HILLSBOROUGH."
That night in Istanbul was by far Gerrard's highest point of his career. He would reach the Champions League Final again two years later against the same Milan team but would fall short. Despite transfer requests from the most successful clubs in the world like Chelsea, Real Madrid, and Inter Milan, Gerrard remained at Liverpool. He never won the Premier League, which still haunts him to this day. He slipped just inside his own half with the ball and gave it to the opposing team resulting in them scoring. If Liverpool won that game, the trophy would have basically been in the bag but they went on to tie it and then drop more points along the way and eventually lost the title and came in second place. It would be harsh to say that Liverpool lost the league because of that moment but that was the beginning of their title collapse. He won a few more domestic trophies under Liverpool but never anything as noteworthy as the Premier League or Champions League. He could have won those if he left for other teams but he did not. Every time his contract expired, he signed a new one. He did so all the way up until 2015. At this point he was in his mid-thirties and on the verge of retiring from the game. He finally stepped away from Liverpool after playing for them for seventeen years and moved to Los Angeles to play in the MLS for one season and then officially retired in 2016. Today, he is the manager of Rangers F.C. in Glasgow, Scotland. When he has time off from coaching he can be spotted at the Liverpool home games supporting his boyhood club. Fans still sing his name even when he's not there.
Growing up, I watched Gerrard almost religiously. He remains my favorite player of all time. For me, his versatility made him amazing to watch as a player but he also had that fire in his belly that made you want to root for him. When the odds were against him in Istanbul, he didn't care. He went ahead and scored and started a revolution on the pitch and took the game back into his hands. When every team that was more expensive than Liverpool wanted him to play for them, he always said, "no." He stuck with the club that raised him. He had loyalty, commitment, and talent. I would have a very tough time finding a player like that in today's game. That is why he is beloved by many and also has respect from non-Liverpool fans. He put everything he had on the line for Liverpool and as a fan, that is all you can ask for. Mistakes can be forgiven or even forgotten about but dedication and commitment live on and will always be remembered. One of these days, a statue of Gerrard will be built at Anfield, right next to the other legends of the club.
For about a year now I have been following the blog And Could He Play. It is about all things Liverpool and is run by a single fan. They post at least 2-3 times a week and write about all subjects related to the club. I found the blog through Twitter, where they post links to the newest blogs. The blog itself is heavily biased and strongly opinionated but that is expected. However, one of the things that I like the most about the blog is that it is not afraid to criticize the club or the players when needed. It is an honest blog and will always tell the truth, even if the truth hurts.
In a recent post from late June the blog dissected the defense, undoubtedly the best part of Liverpool's team over the course of the season. Just when I thought that the blog would go on to praise the defense to no end, I was left surprised. The blog ended by scoring our defense with a 7 out of 10. Albeit this is someone's opinion, it struck me as odd considering the fact that this was a page run by a die hard Liverpool fan. However, they made some valid points that a couple of our key players were either starting to lose their form or are getting too old.
If you have a passion not just for Liverpool but for the beautiful game, then And Could He Play is a great blog to check out if you want constant updates with opinions that are not sugar coated but also provide the passion that comes along with watching soccer.
Many people across the world consider themselves to be fans of Liverpool F.C. However, there are relatively very few people that are actual members of the club itself. Generally, one would think that you would have to a player or owner of the club to be called a member, but anyone can be a member. It is very simple to do and can be done following theses steps.
Open up your preferred web browser (Safari, Google Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc.)
Type in the search bar: www.Liverpoolfc.com (this will take you to the home page for Liverpool F.C.)
At the top part of the screen, click on the tab that says, "Membership."
Once the page loads, scroll down to the part that says, "Join Now" and click on it.
Click on the box that says, "Sign up" and fill out the required information and once that is completed, scroll to the bottom and click "Continue."
Now, select the type of membership you wish to have, "Full, Light or International" then click "Continue"
Select the type of payment you wish to use, then click "Continue."
Go to your email address that you entered and wait for the confirmation email to be received and then open it.
Click the link that confirms the membership.
As an official member of the club, you can now be directly contacted by the club when new merchandise is available, tickets go on sale, or if there is important information about the club that you should know about. It is important to note that the different types of memberships offer different things and the prices will also vary depending on what part of the world you live in.
The 2018-19 season proved to be one full of eye-catching statistics for Liverpool. Soccer is a team game but that does not mean individual performances go unnoticed. In a previous post about the overall team statistics, one of the statistics referenced were the amount of clean sheets (no goals scored upon) kept by Liverpool. This is both a team and individual achievement. The goal keeper with the most clean sheets receives an award called the "Golden Glove" which is handed out in every tournament. Liverpool's goalkeeper, Alisson Becker, was awarded two Golden Gloves for keeping the most clean sheets in the Premier League and in the Champions League.
Now, Alisson has earned a third Golden Glove. This time it comes at the international level with his home country of Brazil. He has now become the first goalkeeper in history to win three Golden Gloves in a calendar year. Even though this is an individual achievement, Alisson's record breaking accomplishment came with help from Liverpool's rock-solid defensive work.
This quite clearly shows that Liverpool players are still putting up very impressive numbers for both the club and their own countries. If one were to read that original statistics post again, they would see how much the club values their defense. The amount of saves, tackles, and duels won, as well as the clean sheets again, would truly prove how spectacular the players have been and they continue to show promise for the future.
After I had read a section on Wikipedia on the aftermath of
the 2018-19 Champions League Final I noticed that something rather significant
was missing. Two of Liverpool's best attacking players come from Africa and
they come from African countries that do not get much representation on the
club soccer level yet, they won the competition.
Liverpool won their sixth European Cup and their second of the Champions League era.[94] The club surpassed Barcelona and Bayern Munich, each with five titles, and ranks third behind Real Madrid (13) and Milan (7) for overall European titles.[101] Defender Virgil van Dijk was named the man of the match by UEFA for his leadership and interventions to break up Tottenham's attacks.[1] Liverpool will play Chelsea, the winners of the Europa League, in the 2019 UEFA Super Cup.[102] They will also take part in the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup.[103]
Liverpool returned to England the day after the final, and celebrated their victory by parading the trophy around Liverpool in an open-top double-decker bus. The parade began at Allerton Maze and continued for 8 miles (13 kilometres) towards the city centre, ending on the Liverpool Strand.[104][105] Police estimated the number of supporters to be approximately 750,000, with the amount of people lining the route causing the parade to last an additional two hours.[105][106]
Nothing in this section is factually inaccurate. The "Post-match" section, I felt, should encompass every significant thing that is related to either team but especially to the winning team. Two African players on Liverpool, Sadio Mané and Mohamed Salah were the first players from their home countries to win the Champions League.
Liverpool won their sixth European Cup and their second of the Champions League era.[94] The club surpassed Barcelona and Bayern Munich, each with five titles, and ranks third behind Real Madrid (13) and Milan (7) for overall European titles.[101] Defender Virgil van Dijk was named the man of the match by UEFA for his leadership and interventions to break up Tottenham's attacks.[1] Liverpool will play Chelsea, the winners of the Europa League, in the 2019 UEFA Super Cup.[102] They will also take part in the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup.[103]
Liverpool returned to England the day after the final, and celebrated their victory by parading the trophy around Liverpool in an open-top double-decker bus. The parade began at Allerton Maze and continued for 8 miles (13 kilometres) towards the city centre, ending on the Liverpool Strand.[104][105] Police estimated the number of supporters to be approximately 750,000, with the amount of people lining the route causing the parade to last an additional two hours. Both Sadio Mané and Mohamed Salah are the first players in history to win the Champions League Final from their respective countries of Senegal and Egypt. Salah is second Arab player to score in a Champions League Final. [105][106]
Now, the Wikipedia article is updated and includes information which I think is important not only for the club history but for soccer history as well. Since the Champions League is the most prestigious competition in club soccer I thought that is would be appropriate to add the fact that two on the same team won it for the first time for their own countries. I thought it was important to include that two players made history for their nations on the same night. The Wikipedia post on the final is here.
Since Liverpool had faced financial difficulties in the last two decades, the club has changed its approach to spending their money. This all changing of course when FSG took over the club, increasing its budget. Players in today's transfer market are outrageously overpriced. No one would argue that the asking prices for players are way too much. With that being the case, it is hard to find clubs that have successfully made transfer deals for players while at the same time not breaking the bank. Liverpool have set an example for other clubs when it comes to this business transaction. Just days ago, Liverpool signed an unknown center back from the Netherlands. Sepp van den Berg is only 17 years old and is relatively unheard of outside of his home country therefore he has a very low price attached to his name. Liverpool only spent 1.3 million pounds on the defender. This is definitely an investment transfer that is low risk but could have high reward. The club spent very little in order to acquire him but a couple years down the road he could have potential to be a future star (fingers crossed for the Dutch and Liverpool).
If the young man does not turn out to be the great player that he is expected to become then Liverpool would not worry as much since they did not break the bank to purchase him. It seems unlikely that this would happen though, considering the fact that Sepp van den Berg would be training under the guidance of fellow Dutch center back, Virgil van Dijk, a player that is considered by many to be the best defender in the world at the moment. At the end of the day, Liverpool have made a remarkable transfer for a low price and the player will have plenty of time and expert training to hone in his skill and become the best he can be.
