 Match programme cover | |||||||
| Event | 2006–07 UEFA Champions League | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Date | 23 May 2007 | ||||||
| Venue | Olympic Stadium, Athens | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Filippo Inzaghi (Milan)[1] | ||||||
| Referee | Herbert Fandel (Germany)[2] | ||||||
| Attendance | 63,000[1] | ||||||
| Weather | Partly cloudy 24 °C (75 °F) 46% humidity[3] | ||||||
The 2007 UEFA Champions League final was the final match of the 2006–07 UEFA Champions League, Europe's primary club football competition. The showpiece event was contested between Liverpool of England and Milan of Italy at the Olympic Stadium in Athens, Greece, on 23 May 2007. Liverpool, who had won the competition five times, were appearing in their seventh final. Milan, who had won the competition six times, were appearing in their eleventh final.
The final was a rematch of the 2005 final which Liverpool won 3–2 in a penalty shootout, after recovering from a three-goal deficit at half-time to level the score at 3–3 after full-time and extra time. Both teams had to pass through five rounds before they reached the final.[4] They both entered in the third qualifying round and won their respective groups before they reached the knockout stage, where matches were contested over two legs, with a match at each team's home ground. Milan's victories varied from close affairs to comfortable victories. They defeated Celtic by a single goal over two legs, while they beat Manchester United 5–3 on aggregate in the semi-final. Liverpool's matches were mainly all close affairs; they beat defending champions Barcelona on the away goals rule in the first knockout round and beat Chelsea in a penalty shootout in the semi-finals, although they did record a 4–0 aggregate win over PSV Eindhoven in the quarter-finals.
Before the match there were ticketing problems because many fans gained entry to the stadium without valid tickets. After the match, a UEFA spokesman accused Liverpool of having the worst fans in Europe,[5] a claim later denied by UEFA president Michel Platini.[6] Watched by a crowd of 63,000,[1] Milan took the lead when Andrea Pirlo's free-kick deflected off Filippo Inzaghi in the first half. Milan extended their lead in the second half when Inzaghi scored a second goal. Liverpool scored a late goal through Dirk Kuyt, but were unable to equalise before the end of the match. Milan won the match 2–1 to win their seventh Champions League.
- ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference
attendancewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
refereewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Tactical Line-ups – Final – Wednesday 23 May 2007" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 23 May 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 November 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
backgroundwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Uefa condemns Liverpool fans as 'worst behaved in Europe' Archived 30 October 2019 at the Wayback Machine The Guardian, 4 June 2007
- ^ Ennis, Darren (5 June 2007). "Platini says no blame for Liverpool fans". Reuters. Archived from the original on 30 October 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2019.