Liverpool look to Steven Gerrard for Uefa Champions League inspiration
Liverpool fans are eager for veteran star to conjure a Champions League escape act like the one that helped them win the title 10 years ago
Ten years on from a dramatic comeback in the Champions League, Liverpool will again look to Steven Gerrard for inspiration when they face Basel in a must-win match tonight.
On December 8, 2004, Liverpool welcomed Greek side Olympiakos to Anfield needing to win by two goals to reach the last 16.
We are still very much alive and we can't wait for the game against Basel at home, which will be another very special European night for sure
Gerrard, then 24, ended the season by hoisting the European Cup into the Istanbul night beneath a shower of red tickertape after a famous comeback against AC Milan in the final.
Given Liverpool's poor recent form, the chances of a similar conclusion to the current campaign appear remote, but that 2004 encounter with Olympiakos provides a positive omen.
Liverpool's 0-0 draw at home to Sunderland on Saturday left them 15 points below leaders Chelsea in the Premier League. Prior to the Olympiakos game, they also found themselves 15 points off the pace, and the leaders then were also a Chelsea team led by Jose Mourinho.
Gerrard had spent the previous close season mulling over an offer from Mourinho to join him at Stamford Bridge, but if the sporting context surrounding Basel's visit is familiar, Gerrard's personal circumstances are now very different.
