The Miracle of Istanbul

The Miracle of Istanbul is the name fans gave to the 2005 Champions League final, when Liverpool came back from 3-0 down at half-time against AC Milan, drew 3-3 and won the trophy on penalties. It is widely seen as the greatest comeback in the history of European club football.

A final that was over by half-time

Carlo Ancelotti's Milan were the favourites: Paolo Maldini, Andrea Pirlo, Kaká, Andriy Shevchenko and Hernán Crespo against a Liverpool side in Rafael Benítez's first season, who had finished fifth in the Premier League. It went exactly as expected. Maldini volleyed in after barely a minute, the fastest goal ever scored in a European Cup final. Crespo added a second before half-time and then, from Kaká's perfectly weighted pass, chipped a third over Jerzy Dudek.

At 3-0, with the Liverpool end of the Atatürk Olympic Stadium still singing You'll Never Walk Alone through the interval, the only question seemed to be how many Milan would score. That moment, the despair before the miracle, is the first frame of our Istanbul story: Crespo Makes It 3-0.

Six minutes that changed football

Benítez changed shape at half-time, bringing on Dietmar Hamann to hold the midfield and freeing Steven Gerrard to push forward. Nine minutes into the second half, Gerrard met John Arne Riise's cross with a looping header and turned to the fans, arms raised, demanding more. Two minutes later Vladimír Šmicer drove in a low shot from outside the box. On the hour, Gerrard was brought down in the area; Dida saved Xabi Alonso's penalty, but Alonso smashed in the rebound.

Three goals in six minutes. 3-3. Milan, who had looked untouchable, were stunned.

Dudek's double save and the shoot-out

Milan recovered and dominated extra time. With three minutes left, Shevchenko had a header and then a rebound from point-blank range, and Dudek somehow blocked both. It remains one of the great saves in any final.

In the shoot-out Dudek danced on his line, a nod to Bruce Grobbelaar's wobbly legs in Liverpool's 1984 final. Serginho blazed over, Pirlo and Shevchenko were saved, and Hamann, Djibril Cissé and Šmicer scored. When Dudek stopped Shevchenko's final kick, Liverpool had won their fifth European Cup, and UEFA let the club keep the trophy for good.

Why the Miracle of Istanbul still matters

Istanbul changed what football fans believe is possible. Whenever a team trails heavily at half-time, someone mentions it. For Liverpool supporters it is a shared memory: where you watched it, who you were with, the moment Gerrard's header went in. Gerrard was named man of the match, and that night is why so many people still ask for a Miracle of Istanbul poster.

Frame the Miracle of Istanbul

We tell Istanbul 2005 in two linked frames. Frame one, Crespo Makes It 3-0, is the despair. Frame two, The Miracle of Istanbul, is the comeback. Take both together as the complete set and save versus buying them separately. Each is framed in A4 or A3, and shipping is free across India. More in our Liverpool posters collection.

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