The Top Flight
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Liverpool: Famous European comebacks giving Reds hope in Champions League semifinal

By Ashley Anthony

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 25: The electronic scoreboard indicates Liverpool's amazing comeback during the European Champions League final between Liverpool and AC Milan on May 25, 2005 at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 25: The electronic scoreboard indicates Liverpool's amazing comeback during the European Champions League final between Liverpool and AC Milan on May 25, 2005 at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) /
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LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – APRIL 14: Divock Origi (L) of Liverpool celebrates scoring his team’s opening goal with Adam Lallana during the UEFA Europa League quarter-final, second leg match between Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund at Anfield on April 14, 2016, in Liverpool, United Kingdom. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – APRIL 14: Divock Origi (L) of Liverpool celebrates scoring his team’s opening goal with Adam Lallana during the UEFA Europa League quarter-final, second leg match between Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund at Anfield on April 14, 2016, in Liverpool, United Kingdom. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) /

Let the second half begin. On the night the score at half time was 2-0 and the score on aggregate was 3-1 to the German side.

Hitting Liverpool on the break counted in favour of the visitors (BVB) and surprise, surprise… They were the team to take the lead by not one goal, but two goals in the first half. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan drew first blood in the fifth and ninth minute of the game.

It was surely over at this point in the match. Minutes away from the second half, two goals down, and having to worry about the away goal rule, nothing was in support of the Reds. But then the recovery wave started breaking.

Liverpool hit back almost immediately after the second half whistle blew. Divock Origi, who has shown up in testing times, came good with a strike to get the goal difference back to one. The atmosphere peaked and Anfield was at 10 000 decibels.

Unfortunately, another turn of events took place when Klopp’s previous golden boy, Marco Rues added Dortmund’s third goal of the game. This was also their last, thinking they’ve done enough to discharge Liverpool from the Europa League. Just like that 10 000 decibels silenced in a blink of an eye to faint sounds of little crickets chirping in the background.

The rupture of disappointment was felt throughout Merseyside. There was certainly no coming back from this 3-1 goal difference. Klopp’s men needed three goals to be scored in under 40 minutes. What to do, what to do?

Well, when in doubt send in your magician and stir up some sort of winning potion to help turn the result in your favour, and Philippe Coutinho did just that. The little man scored the second for Liverpool inside 66 minutes and the crowd cranked it up again.

Then came the two men who stood tall at the back for Liverpool, Mamadou Sakho and Dejan Lovren. Sakho took his chance and got the game level to 3-3 after the 77th minute of the game. It was still Borussia’s game if the scoreline stayed as is.

However, it took one set piece, and one man, and one moment of brilliance and the result was all but over for Dortmund and Liverpool. Lovren in the dying seconds of the clash got the final goal of the game and shattered all hope for the Dortmund outfit, who were left stranded on the pitch in awe, unable to comprehend what just transpired.

Liverpool completed one of the greatest ever nights in Europa League history.

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