Chelsea 4-4 Liverpool: An Instant Classic

Years from now, we’ll look back and talk about that incredible four-all draw between Chelsea and Liverpool in the 2009 Champions League quarter-final from Stamford Bridge. We’ll lament how Champions League football isn’t as exciting as it used to be, how teams don’t play as open a game that they used to, and how we saw an incredible 12 goals in a two-leg affair.

Savor the moment because it’ll be a long time before a game like this ever happens again.

What a wonderful advertisement for not only the world’s game, but also the level of skill and passion found in the English Premier League. These were two teams who never gave up until the final whistle was blown. Full credit has to go to Chelsea for not killing time. And how about Liverpool? Even when the score was 4-4 and they had to score 2 goals to try to win it with just a few minutes left, the team still pushed forward with an insane sense of belief that they could pull it off.

The game was full of heroes on the spring night in west London. First, the supporters from both clubs were amazing. The deafening roars and singing drowning out the usually loud Champions League theme song. The flag waving Chelsea fans near the end. The Liverpool fans who never gave up.

Then there were the players on the pitch. Man of the match, in my opinion, had to be Frank Lampard who showed the coolness under pressure and touch of class to be the deciding factor between the two teams. Didier Drogba worked incredibly hard too and gave one of his best performances in months.

With Liverpool, it was more of a team effort than individual players standing out. Collectively they played with so much passion and confidence, particularly in the first half, that they did their city and football club so proud. This was a team who came within a whisker, so many times, of snatching enough goals and staging one of the greatest comebacks of all time. But whenever they came close, Chelsea continued to step up their game and put them one step closer to a victory on aggregate.

This was an edge of the seat classic. This was a beautiful example of how football should be played. This is a game I’ll never forget.