The legendary final of the Champions League, an epic comeback story

It was May 25, in an increasingly distant 2005. Liverpool and Milan reached the Champions League final and met in Istanbul. The first half seemed to be a do-or-die affair, but Liverpool achieved the seemingly impossible.

The final got off to a bad start for the Reds. Paolo Maldini, in the first minute, gave the 'rossoneri' the lead from Andrea Pirlo's free kick. Then Hernán Crespo's scored two before the break, the first from Shevchenko's pass, the second assisted by Kaká, setting the stage for the 'Miracle of Istanbul'. To make matters worse, Liverpool had lost two men to injury in the first half.

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Liverpool went into half-time trailing 0-3 and with only one change to make, but Rafa Benitez's side did not give up. Steven Gerrard's header with 56 minutes on the clock brought some life into a match that seemed dead.

Two minutes later Smicer, with a long-range shot, surprised Dida, who managed to touch a ball that ended up sneaking into his goal. Milan panicked and the unthinkable happened. A few seconds later, with Liverpool on the attack, Gerrard appeared again, slipped between the lines and fell in the box, brought down by a Gattuso who could not believe what had just happened.

A very young Xabi Alonso (23 years old, first season at Liverpool), took the responsibility of taking the penalty. And although Dida redeemed himself with a good dive for his mistake in the previous goal, he could do nothing to prevent the Basque midfielder from kicking the ball in after the rebound.

Penalty shootout to write history

The match that seemed lost had been tied. Liverpool and Milan cooled their tempers, as no one wanted to make a mistake that would condemn them. The match was over, extra time was over and, after witnessing the miracle, the final had to be settled from the penalty spot.

Liverpool had tied the match in just six minutes that are now living soccer history. And an agonizing penalty shootout decided the Reds as the winner of this Champions League.