20 March 1991 - The Night The Lights Went Out In Marseille

On 20 March 1991, defending champions Milan forfeited their European Cup quarterfinal against Marseille when they refused to play the last two minutes.

After drawing the first leg in Milan 1-1 two weeks earlier, they met at Marseille's Stade Vélodrome for the second leg. It was a contentious match, with referee Bo Karlsson issuing five yellow cards, three to Milan and two to Marseille. It remained scoreless deep into the second half, when Marseille finally took the lead with a 75th-minute goal from winger Chris Waddle.

With two minutes of stoppage time remaining and the score still 1-0, half of the stadium's floodlights went out, forcing Karlsson to halt the match. He intended it to be a temporary halt, but when the lights came back on fifteen minutes later, Milan director Adriano Galliani refused to put his team back on the pitch, claiming that television crews had "disrupted the match" by going out onto the field, though some critics accused him of angling for a replay. In any event, UEFA declared it a forfeit, awarding the victory to Marseille.

Afterward, UEFA banned Milan from European competition for one year and also suspended Galliani from all official functions until July 1993.

Marseille made their way to the final, where they lost on penalties to Red Star Belgrade.

1 February 1958 - Will The Real Luther Blissett Please Stand Up

On 1 February 1958, Luther Blissett, who holds the Watford records for appearances and goal, was born in Jamaica.

The striker, who moved to England at a young age, joined Watford's youth team in 1974, then signed a professional contract with the Fourth Division side one year later. His first two seasons were unremarkable, but he began scoring at a rapid pace in the 1977-78 season and helped Watford climb the league table all the way to the First Division by 1982. That season in the top flight--the club's first--was Blissett's best with a total of 27 goals in 41 appearances.

His performance caught the eye of Italian giants AC Milan, who signed him in June 1983 for £1M. But his form remained in England and he scored only six times in 39 appearances across all competitions before Milan sold him back to Watford for £550,000 in the summer of 1984. He remained there for another four years, then moved to Bournemouth for three seasons before returning to Watford for a third and final time. By the time he left again in 1992, he had set club records for appearances (503) and goals (183).

He retired 1994 after brief spells with Bury and Mansfield Town and also made a total of 14 appearances for England.

In 1994, a group of political and cultural activists in Italy adopted Blissett's name as a collective pseudonym for a series of pranks, saying "anyone can be Luther Blissett simply by adopting the name Luther Blissett." Use of the name quickly spread across Europe and the United States and was attached to a variety of activities, including one novel written under Blissett's name. The real Luther Blissett joked about participating, but is not actually a part of the project.

22 October 1969 - It's Like They Went To A Fight And A Match Broke Out

On 22 October 1969, AC Milan won their first Intercontinental Cup in a match that one paper described as "the culmination of all that is evil in international club soccer."

It was the second leg of the competition between European Cup champions Milan and Copa Libertadores winners Estudiantes. The Argentines faced an uphill battle, as the Intercontinental Cup had just moved away from a points system to an aggregate score model and the Italians had won the first leg 3-o in Milan.

The return leg at La Bombenera became hostile even before the opening kick-off: Estudiantes players kicked balls at the visiting team during warm-ups and some of the 45,000 spectators reportedly dumped hot coffee on the Milan players as they took the pitch. But the situation grew worse in the 17th minute, as Milan striker Pierino Prati--who had scored a hat-trick in Milan's 4-1 win over Ajax in that year's European Cup--suffered a mild concussion and was briefly unconscious. He managed to play on until the 37th minute, when he was replaced by Giorgio Rognoni.

By that time, Milan had extended their aggregate lead to 4-0 with a 30th-minute goal from captain Gianni Rivera. It wasn't all good for Rivera, though, who was on the receiving end of a punch from Estudiantes goalkeeper Alberto Poletti. Poletti also delivered a kick to the face of Milan's Argentina-born French striker Nestor Combin (pictured), who suffered a broken nose and cheekbone thanks to an elbow from Estudiantes defender Ramón Aguirre Suárez. (Combin ended up spending the night in jail, charged with evading obligatory Argentinian military service, but eventually managed to convince the authorities that he had completed his service in France, where he was a citizen).

Estudiantes managed to score twice before the break (including a goal from Suárez), but were unable to close the gap and lost 4-2 on aggregate.

Afterward, faced with harsh criticism from the international football community, including the Guardian report quoted above, the Argentine Football Association issued several punishments: Poletti received a lifetime ban, Suárez got a 30-game suspension and a five-year international ban, and defender Eduardo Manero received a 20-game suspension and a three-year international ban. All three of them were arrested and sentenced to 30 days in jail.

18 October 1908 - A Derby On Neutral Ground

On 18 October 1908, AC Milan and Inter played the first Milan derby. In Switzerland.

The match came just over seven months after Inter's formation. They had previously been part of AC Milan, but split in March 1908 over a dispute about the propriety of signing foreign players (Inter favored it, hence the adoption of "Internazionale" as their name).

The first meeting between the two clubs came in the Coppa Chiasso, a tournament played in the the Canton of Ticino in southern Switzerland. Milan won the first two editions, played in 1906 and 1907, which consisted of three and four teams, respectively. For the 1908 tournament, the field expanded to six teams, including the newly formed Inter. The two Milanese teams reached the final which Milan won 2-1.

Since then, the two clubs have met a total of 276 times, with Milan maintaining the edge with 109 wins to Inter's 95, with 72 draws.

16 September 1979 - A Good Day To Tie

On 16 September 1979, the Serie A season kicked off with eight matches, seven of which ended in draws.

Goals were at a premium that day, as eleven of the sixteen teams in action failed to find the net, resulting in five scoreless draws: Ascoli-Napoli, Avellino-Lazio, Cagliari-Torino, Perugia-Catanzaro, and Roma-Milan. The other ineffective attack came from Pescara, who were on the wrong end of the day's only unbalanced result, losing 2-0 to Inter.

There were also two score draws, both of which ended 1-1: Fiorentina-Udinese and Juventus-Bologna.

Other leagues have experienced similar days, with eight draws out of eleven English First Division matches on 10 September 1966 and eight draws out of ten matches in the thirteenth round of the Argentine Clausura (though the matches occurred over a period of three days). On a percentage basis, the record goes to Scotland, with draws in all six Premier Division matches played on 22 January 1994.

[Special thanks to the Guardian's John Ashdown for the information, published in his Knowledge column on 3 May 2011.]

18 August 1943 - Milan's Golden Boy Is Born

On 18 August 1943, future AC Milan captain and 1969 Ballon d'Or winner Gianni Rivera was born in Alessandria, Italy.



A high-scoring midfielder, Rivera--nicknamed "the Golden Boy"--began his professional career in 1959 with his hometown club, but moved to AC Milan in 1960. He remained there until his retirement in 1979, amassing a total of 658 appearances and 164 goals for the Rossoneri in all competitions. Along the way, they won three scudettos (1962, 1968, 1979), four Coppa Italias (1967, 1972, 1973, 1977), one Intercontinental Cup (1969), two Cup Winners' Cups (1968, 1973), and two European Cups (1963, 1969).



After that first European Cup, a 2-1 victory over Benfica, Rivera finished as runner-up to Dynamo Moscow keeper Lev Yashin for that year's Ballon d'Or. He finally claimed the award in 1963 after leading Milan to that year's European Cup, despite missing the final against Ajax due to an ankle injury.



Rivera also starred for Italy, making 60 appearances between 1962 and 1974. During that time, Italy won the 1968 European Championship and reached the final of the 1970 World Cup (where they lost to Brazil).



After his retirement, he held a vice-president position with Milan until 1986. In 2004, Pelé named him one of the 125 greatest living players.

28 July 1925 - Before Forlan and Suarez, There Was Schiaffino

On 28 July 1925, Juan Alberto "Pepe" Schiaffino was born in Montevideo. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players to come out of Uruguay, he went on to star for Peñarol and AC Milan and played for both the Uruguayan and Italian national teams.

He began his professional career in 1943 with his hometown team, Peñarol, and stayed with them for twelve seasons. An inside forward and a gifted passer, he scored 88 goals in 227 league appearances for the club and helped them to six national titles (1944, 1945, 1949, 1951, 1953, 1954). During that time, he also made his first full international appearance, playing for Uruguay in a 1-1 draw with Argentina in December 1945.

He scored eight goals for Uruguay in 23 appearances and starred for them in two World Cups, including the 1950 World Cup title match against Brazil, which Uruguay went on to win, 2-1, after Schiaffino scored the equalizer in dramatic fashion.

In 1954, he moved to AC Milan for the then-world record fee of £72,000. He was an instant success in Italy, scoring a brace on his debut and leading Milan to the 1955 Scudetto, the first of four league titles in his six seasons there. In 1958, he scored the opening goal of the European Cup Final, though Milan eventually lost to Real Madrid 3-2 after extra time. When he moved to Milan, he also moved his national team allegiance to Italy, making four appearances for them between 1954 and 1958.

He finished his playing career with Roma, where he played from 1960 to 1962. He later returned to Uruguay, where he went on to manage both the national team (1974-75) and Peñarol (1975-76).

He died in 2002, shortly after being named Uruguay's Player of the Century.

14 July 2006 - Nobody Passes Go, Nobody Collects $200

On 14 July 2006, an Italian football federation panel announced the punishments for the Calciopoli match-fixing scandal, including relegations for Juventus, Fiorentina, and Lazio.

The announcement was the result of a police investigation into the 2005-06 Serie A season that found all three clubs, plus AC Milan, guilty of fixing matches by bribing referees. The prosecution requested relegations and points deductions for each club, reserving the harshest penalties for Juventus. The Turin club's general manager, Luciano Moggi (pictured), was a central figure in the collusion, which resulted in Juventus winning the Scudetto for 2005-06.

Although the prosecutors requested that Juventus be demoted at least two levels, the panel's sanction dropped them only to Serie B. They also stripped Juventus' 2005 and 2006 league titles and docked them 30 points for the upcoming season. Fiorentina and Lazio were relegated as well, while Milan escaped with a relatively minor points deduction. The Juventus board resigned en masse, while Moggi received a lifetime ban.

After the appeals process, the punishments were reduced. Juventus ended up as the only club relegated--for the first time in club history. The points deduction was lowered from 30 to 9, however, and they won promotion back to Serie A for the 2007-08 season.

28 May 2003 - So The Lesson Is He Who Has Seedorf, Wins

On 28 May 2003, Juventus and AC Milan needed a penalty shootout to decide the first all-Italian Champions League Final.

Played before a crowd of 63,215 at Old Trafford in Manchester, the Final was only the second one in tournament history to pair teams from the same league--Real Madrid defeated Valencia in 2000. The Serie A race had officially ended four days prior with Juventus at the top of the table. Although they finished 11 points clear of third-place Milan, the two teams had split their two league meetings, with each team winning at home, 2-1.

The Final was even closer. The only real chance came from Milan striker Andriy Shevchenko, whose early goal wasruled out because his teammate Rui Costa had blocked the view of Juventus keeper Gianluigi Buffon from an offside position. They completed the first 120 minutes of play deadlocked at 0-0.

The shootout took place in front of the Juventus section. After four kicks each, Milan were up 1-2, with both Buffon and Milan keeper Dida making critical saves. Juventus forward and captain Alessandro Del Piero converted his team's last kick to level the score, putting the pressure on Milan's last kicker, Shevchenko. But the Ukrainian confidently stroked the ball past Buffon for the win, 0-0 (2-3).

Coincidentally, it was the third Champions League trophy for Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf, who had won it in 1995 with Ajax (against Milan) and in 1998 with Real Madrid (against Juventus).

22 May 1963 - Instead Of A Third, We Got A First

On 22 May 1963, AC Milan stopped Benfica from winning their third straight European Cup, beating the Portuguese side 2-1 at Wembley. It was the first of Milan's 7 European Cup/Champions League titles and the first time an Italian team won the tournament.

At the time, Benfica were staking their claim as the best team in the world, coming off back-to-back tournament titles with Final wins over Barcelona (3-2 in 1961) and Real Madrid (5-3 in 1962). They also boasted one of the sport's biggest stars in Eusébio, who late brace provided the winning margin in the previous Final.

Mian, however, had stars of their own, including forward José Altafini, who played for Brazil in the 1958 World Cup then for Italy in the 1962 tournament. The Rossoneri had been in the Final before, taking Real Madrid to extra time in 1958 before falling 3-2.

Playing before a crowd of 45,700, Benfica took the lead with an 18th-minute strike from Eusébio, who sprinted down the middle of the pitch and blasted a right-footed shot past Milan keeper Giorgio Ghezzi. It took Milan 40 minutes to find an equalizer, as Altafini unleashed a right-footed shot of his own from the edge of the box. Just eight minutes later, Altafini found himself in a one-on-one situation with Benfica keeper Costa Pereira. Pereira successfully stopped the initial shot, but Altafini slammed the rebound home to give Milan the 2-1 lead that was the match's final score.

Milan went on to win the tournament a total of seven times, second only to Real Madrid's nine. Benfica returned to the Final five more times and were runners-up each time, most recently in 1990 when they lost again to Milan.

13 May 1982 - Gooch Is Loose

On 13 May 1982, US international and FC Twente center back Oguchi “Gooch” Onyewu was born in Washington, DC.

Onyewu played for years at Clemson University (2000-01), then signed with French side Metz in 2002. He made only three appearances for Metz, however, before moving to Belgian club La Louvière on loan. In 2004, he moved again, signing with Standard Liège. He flourished there, twice being named to the Belgian league’s Best XI and winning the Foreign Player of the Year in 2005. He won back-to-back league titles with Standard in 2008 and 2009 before making a shock move to AC Milan for the 2009-10 season.

A knee injury forced him to miss the entire Serie A season, however, and in 2011 Milan sent him on loan to defending Eredivisie champions FC Twente, where he has helped them hold on to the top spot.

Onyewu has played for the United States since 2004, winning the 2005 and 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cups.

8 May 1974 - Even The East German Judges Liked This One

On 8 May 1974, Magdeburg became the only East German team to win a major European trophy, beating AC Milan in the Cup Winners' Cup Final.

Under manager Heinz Krügel (pictured), who joined Magdeburg in 1966, the club had risen from the East German second division to become league champions in 1972. That qualified them for the next season's Cup Winners' Cup, where, playing with a team composed entirely of East Germans, they advanced with wins over NAC Breda, Baník Ostrava, Beroe Stara Zagora, and Sporting Lisbon to face defending champions AC Milan.

The Final was played before a modest crowd of 4,000 at Feyenoord Stadion in Rotterdam. The two sides were locked in a defensive struggle for almost the entire first half when, in the 43rd minute, Milan defender Enrico Lanzi put the ball into his own net.

Milan sought desperately for an equalizer, but it was Magdeburg who found the next goal with a strike from midfielder Wolfgang Seguin in the 74th minute. That ended the scoring and Magdeburg claimed a 2-0 victory. It was part of a Double for the East Germans, who won their second league title that year.

They won the league once more in 1975, then went into decline after Krügel retired in 1976. Magdeburg currently play in the Regionalliga Nord, Germany's fourth tier.

20 February 1940 - Nothing Funny About That Scoring Record

On 20 February 1940, Jimmy Greaves was born in the London's East Ham district. He would go on to become the greatest goalscorer in the history of the English top flight.

He got off to a great start, scoring on his professional debut with Chelsea in 1957. In four seasons at Stamford Bridge, he scored a total of 132 goals in all competitions, making 169 appearances. While there, he twice finished as the First Division's top scorer, including a 41-goal league tally in 1960-61 that remains a club record (as does his all-competition total of 43 the same season).

After a brief unhappy period with AC Milan, he returned to England with Tottenham Hotspur, where he stayed for nine seasons. It was one of Spurs' most successful periods, as they won the 1963 European Cup Winner's Cup and two FA Cups (1962, 1967). During his time with Spurs, Greaves was a member of England's 1966 World Cup-winning side, but was injured in their last group stage match. Because he missed the remainder of the tournament, including the Final, he did not receive a winner's medal at the time. But after an FA campaign, he received his medal in 2009.

After leaving Tottenham, Greaves played briefly for West Ham, making 40 appearances between 1969 and 1971, when he retired. In all, he scored a record 366 goals in 528 English top flight appearances. Afterward, he became a television pundit famous for his catch-phrase, "it's a funny old game."

29 January 1995 - The Death Of Vincenzo Spagnolo

On 29 January 1995, 24-year old Genoa supporter Vincenzo Spagnolo was stabbed before a match against AC Milan. He died later that day while undergoing surgery.

According to reports, Spagnolo was on his way into Genoa's Stadio Luigi Ferraris when he and other Genoa supporters were attacked by a group of approximately 20 Milan ultras, who had traveled to the match in disguise, separate from other Milan supporter groups. The attack escalated into a massive brawl, with police using tear gas to subdue the combatants. Spagnolo, who received a stab wound to the stomach, was one of seven people sent to the hospital.

When word reached the teams at halftime, they decided not to continue with the match, which was scoreless. Italian authorities then canceled all national sporting events for the following weekend. The incident caused such sensitivities between Genoa and Milan that their visiting supporters were not allowed into each other's stadiums until 2010.

Witnesses identified Spagnolo's attacker as 19-year old Simone Barbaglia, an apprentice gardener from Milan.

28 January 2002 - Weah Has The Time Gone?

On 28 January 2002, former FIFA World Player of the Year George Weah ended his 19-year international career as Liberia bowed out of the African Cup of Nations.

Weah, considered my many to be the greatest player Africa has ever produced, was born in Monrovia in 1966. After starring for a handful of African sides, including Mighty Barolle, Invincible Eleven, Africa Sports, and Tonnerre Yaoundé, he joined the Liberian national team in 1988, the same year he moved to Europe to play for Arsène Wenger's Monaco side.

For the next 12 seasons, Weah established himself as one of the world's best strikers, playing for Monaco (1988-92), PSG (1992-95), and AC Milan (1995-2000). In 1995, he won a league and cup double with PSG, while taking them to the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League as the tournament's top scorer. That year's performance earned him several individual awards, including the FIFA World Player of the Year, the Ballon d'Or, and his third African Footballer of the Year award (the previous two came in 1989 and 1994).

Despite his success at the club level, however, Weah never replicated it with Liberia. Like his namesake George Best, he is one of the most famous players never to appear at the World Cup--the closest he came was in 2002, when Liberia fell one point shy of qualification. His appearance on 28 January 2002 was his 60th for Liberia, who were eliminated from the Cup of Nations that day after falling to Nigeria, 0-1.

Weah retired in 2003 after playing for a series of different clubs including Chelsea (2000), Manchester City (2000), Marseille (2000-01), and Al-Jazira (2001-03). Afterward, he moved into politics, making an unsuccessful run for the Liberian presidency in 2005. He remains politically active, recently announcing his intention to stage another Presidential campaign in 2011.

20 January 1985 - Maldini Joins The Family Business

On 20 January 1985, 16-year old defender Paolo Maldini made his first professional appearance, coming on as a second-half substitute for AC Milan. He would go on to become the club's all-time appearance leader with 902 matches.

Maldini was following in the footsteps of his father, Cesare, who played defense at Milan from 1954 to 1966, winning 4 Serie A titles and the 1963 European Cup. Paolo was born in 1968 and joined the Milan youth team at the age of 10. By 1985, he had earned a spot on the bench and then, in a match against Udinese, he took the pitch for the first time, coming on for the second half.

The match ended in a draw and was Maldini's only appearance that season. But he became an established starter at left back the next season, making a total of 40 appearances in all competitions. In his 25 seasons with the Rossoneri, they won 7 Scudettos and 5 European Cup/Champions League titles.

Although Maldini maintained an incredibly high performance level for his entire career, his annus miribilis came in 1993-94. That season, Milan won both Serie A and the Champions League, while Maldini advanced to the World Cup Final with Italy, losing to Brazil on penalties. For his performance, World Soccer Magazine named him the 1994 World Player of the Year, the first time the award went to a defender.

AC Milan Players Posed At Public Beach In Dubai

Don't you wish Real Madrid player would do more things like this ?? ...Training on a public beach....

Of course AC Milan players will do good, especially for Zlatan.

When Real Madrid had their open training session on 30 Dec 2010, AC Milan trained openly at Mamzar beach and Park in Dubai, on the same day. Which more appealing to you guys ??

The Milan squad came to Dubai on 28 December 2010 for a winter training camp for Inaugural Emirates Challenge Cup that will held today. The team will take on a local Al Ahli team.

During the time, the players made several training session that opened to public, like the beach training. But sorry to say, rather than looked like a professional footballers, they looked more like tourist attraction.

 "The Emirates Challenge Cup with AC Milan and Al Ahli is set to be an action packed event and is certain to draw in football fans from across the UAE," said Mohammed Mattar, Emirates' Divisional Senior Vice President, Airport Services.

"Fans of AC Milan will benefit from the rare opportunity of being able to watch the team train at Al Ahli stadium, adding even further excitement to the team's visit."

"AC Milan play fast paced football that will keep fans entertained and Al Ahli on their toes and I wish both teams the best of luck."

The match will be played at Al Ahli Stadium, Dubai and kicks off at 8pm local time.

12 December 1993 - Milan Gets Stuck In Second

On 12 December 1993, São Paulo won their second consecutive Intercontinental Cup, beating European Cup runners-up AC Milan at the National Stadium in Tokyo.

First contested in 1960, the Intercontinental Cup generally pitched the reigning Copa Liberatadores champion against the current European Cup holder. But Marseille, who had won the 1993 European Cup, were banned from international competition for a bribery scandal, so runner-up AC Milan took their place.

São Paulo, who had won the previous Cup over Barcelona, took the lead with a 19th-minute goal from striker Palhinha, who had been the Capeonato Paulista's top scorer the previous season. Milan equalized after the break with a 48th-minute goal from forward Daniele Massaro, but the Brazilian side quickly regained the lead 11 minutes later with a goal from midfielder Toninho Cerezo.

Milan striker Jean-Pierre Papin scored a late equalizer in the 81st minute, but as extra time loomed, São Paulo forward Müller scored the match winner with only 2 minutes remaining.

After the 2004 Final, the Intercontinental Cup was replaced with the Club World Cup, which São Paulo won in 2005 and Milan won in 2007.

23 August 1910 - The Man From Milan

On 23 July 1910, future Italian legend Giuseppe Meazza was born in Milan. He would go on the become the Italian national team's greatest scorer and a two-time World Cup winner.

Meazza, who lost his father to the war in 1917, learned to play football barefoot on the streets of Milan. When he was 12, he began playing for local side Gloria FC and a fan bought him his first pair of football boots. He began his professional career in 1927 with Inter and was an immediate success, scoring a brace in his debut against Milanese Unione Sportiva. The following season, the first for Serie A, he scored 31 goals.

He remained with Inter for 13 seasons, winning three Serie A titles (1930, 1938, 1940) and one Coppa Italia (1939). During that period, he joined the Italian national team, earning his first cap in 1930 and winning back-to-back World Cups in 1934 and 1938. In all, he scored 33 goals for the Azzurri, making his the national team's leading scorer until the record was broken by Gigi Riva in 1973.

In 1940, he moved across town to Milan, where he played for two seasons. He later spent time with Juventus (1942-43), Varese (1944), and Atalanta (1945-46), before returning to Inter for one last season before retiring. He turned to management, starting with Atalanta, but also taking charge of Inter (on three separate occasions) and the Italian national team before retiring completely in 1957. He died in 1979 at the age of 68. The next year, Inter and Milan renamed their joint stadium after him.

25 May 2005 - The Miracle Of Istanbul

On 25 May 2005, Liverpool won their fifth European Cup/Champions League trophy, coming back from a 3-0 deficit to beat AC Milan on penalties 3-3 (3-2) before a crowd of 70,000 at Istanbul's Atatürk Olympic Stadium.

The win salvaged an otherwise disappointing season for the Reds, who had finished the Premier League season in fifth place after an early FA Cup elimination and a loss to Chelsea in the League Cup Final. The win also allowed Liverpool to compete in the next season's Champions League - their fifth-place League finish was outside the four qualification spots, but UEFA granted them a special exemption to compete in 2005-06 as title holders.

Milan were favored to win and, true to form, took an early lead with a volley from captain Paolo Maldini after only 51 seconds (it was the fastest-ever goal in a European Cup/Champions League Final and made the 36-year old Maldini the competition's oldest-ever goalscorer). Liverpool attacked the Milan area, but were unable to break through the Italians' defense. Liverpool's efforts exposed them to a counter-attack, resulting in two more Milan goals before the break, both from Argentinian striker Hernán Crespo (38', 42'), on loan from Chelsea.

Milan's 3-0 lead looked insurmountable, but Liverpool renewed their pressure after the break. They played only three defenders in order to bolster their attack, which paid dividends when they scored three goals in a six-minute period (Gerrard 54', Šmicer 56', Alonso 60') to draw level. Despite Liverpool's weakened back line, Milan were unable to score and the match went to extra time, then to penalty kicks.

Milan went first in the shootout and missed their first two kicks - the first went over the bar, while the second was easily saved. Liverpool made their first two, but their third was saved, so that after four kicks, Liverpool were ahead 3-2. Milan's Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko, who had scored the winning penalty in the 2003 Final, stepped up to take Milan's last kick, knowing that he needed to convert it in order to prevent Liverpool from winning. Unfortunately for Milan, he sent it right down the middle where it was saved by keeper Jerzy Dudek.