Ex-Liverpool Ace Makes Remarkable Penalty Revelation About 2005 Champions League Triumph

Luis Garcia has admitted that he would have tried to take a panenka penalty in Liverpool's 2005 Champions League triumph if he had been given the chance to do so.

The ex-Reds star spoke exclusively to FourFourTwo for their October 2017 magazine edition, and was quizzed on one of the biggest and most remarkable nights in the club's history.

Liverpool were famously trailing Italian giants AC Milan 3-0 at the half-time break in Istanbul before three second-half goals from Rafael Benitez's team sensationally took the match to extra-time and penalties.

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The Merseysiders' infamous victory was complete with a 3-2 penalty shootout win that has been hailed as one of the finest comebacks in sport, let alone football, and secured a fifth European Cup for the English heavyweights.

Recalling that emotional night in Eastern Europe, Garcia revealed that he had stepped forward to volunteer to take one of Liverpool's first five penalties but was held back from doing so.

He explained: “They wouldn’t let me take a penalty! I wanted to take one but Rafa had other ideas. I think I would have been the sixth had it gone to sudden death.”

Dietmar Hamann, Djibril Cisse and Vladimir Smicer all converted their spot kicks, while Jon Arne Riise's penalty was saved by Milan goalkeeper Dida.

It mattered not as Jerzy Dudek saved Serginho's, Andrea Pirlo's and Andriy Shevchenko's attempts from 12 yards to secure a seemingly unprecedented triumph for Benitez's Liverpool.

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Steven Gerrard had been in line to take Liverpool' fifth and final spot kick, and Garcia added that he would have likely been the club's sixth penalty taker if the round of five had gone to sudden death.

Surprisingly, the ex-Spain international also alleged that he would have tried to pull off a sensational panenka if he had been handed the opportunity to step forward and face Dida - a potential miss that would no doubt have been catastrophic for Liverpool.

He said: “I did the same to score my first goal in Spain too. I loved a Panenka. I think I would have attempted one in Istanbul if I’d been allowed to take a penalty!”