It's been just three weeks since Liverpool beat Barcelona 4-0 in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final at Anfield, but the game has already become the stuff of folklore.
We all know the story by now, but if you need a rehash, the Reds were downed 3-0 at Camp Nou, thanks in part to a wondrous free-kick from Lionel Messi, but rallied triumphantly at home to spank La Blaugrana 4-0 and, against all the odds, secure their place in the final.
And, in a video segment for Norwegian broadcasters Viasport, several of Liverpool's key protagonists on that fateful night had their say on the evening, after each rewatching the incredible game.
Naturally, the build-up to the game was dominated by the first leg result and, speaking on this, Mohamed Salah, who was infamously ruled out of the second leg, declared: “To lose against Barcelona away, 3-0, was difficult for us, [but] we beat Manchester City last season, so it was always in my mind that [when] you play home at Anfield, it’s always something special."
Centre back extraordinaire Virgil van Dijk also spoke on that Camp Nou clash, admitting: “It was a strange one, we were like 'how did we lose it 3-0? You know, how could it happen? It was a reality and we were 3-0 down. We had to have a miracle at Anfield to turn it around."
Just watched the Liverpool vs Barcelona highlights for the millionth time. Still can’t get my head around it - the sheer will & fight to completely tear Barcelona apart was phenomenal. Just one more hurdle to go...
— Leanne Prescott (@_lfcleanne) May 27, 2019
Thing is, that was exactly what happened, as Trent Alexander-Arnold explained when asked to sum the night up: "Crazy, I think. It’s very rare you see stuff like that. It was just one of those very, very special nights and something I don’t think anyone who was involved will ever forget.
"Everyone was just up for it, and the crowd wanted us to do it as well. I think when we got the early goal, that’s when we had a lot of belief. The two goals in quick succession, that was the moment where everyone thought ‘yeh, we’re going to do this’."
Speaking on his involvement in the game's most memorable goal, you know, that corner, the youngster revealed: “I’ve just seen that Shaq [Xherden Shaqiri] wanted it, so I’ve walked away and then I’ve seen Divock [Origi] free in the middle of the box and thought why not?"
Origi then took it from there, explaining: “I was looking back a bit, I felt like something might happen. The ball then came and I had to re-adjust in like a second."
Smirking, he then added: "I’ve practised that shot before."
Sixteen minutes after the Reds' fourth goal, came the just as memorable celebrations. Summing those feelings up, van Dijk said: “It was goosebumps all-over, I think for everyone. This says a lot about all of us, the whole club. We will do everything we can on the pitch, and they will do everything for us.”
Attempting to do the same was the Belgian striker, drafted in at the last minute to replace Roberto Firmino, who professed: “Yeah, that shows the unity of us all. The fans, the club, the staff, everyone was just there, it felt like we were playing with 12 men, so yeah, the combination of all these emotions and togetherness was unbelievable."
And, while none of the players dared say it, they'll be dreaming of similar scenes come Saturday night in Madrid against Tottenham.
Source : 90min