Crucial Goals in Football No.3 – Jesper Gronkjaer vs Liverpool 11th May 2003
Jesper Gronkjaer scored the winning goal for Chelsea in a match against Liverpool on the final day of the season. It not only secured Chelsea a place in the Champions League the following season, but would have bigger implications for the club’s history. More of that shortly.
Chelsea and Liverpool both stood a chance of claiming the final Champions League spot going into the final game of the season. There was always a place in the UEFA Cup for the team that missed out, but with a £20 million bonus for reaching the Champions League, there was a real financial incentive for both clubs.
Both sides were level on points going into the match. However, Chelsea had a better goal difference (+30 compare to Liverpool’s +20) meaning the visitors needed to win. A draw or victory would give Chelsea fourth place.
Liverpool took the lead after x minutes, with Finnish defender Sami Hyypia jumping highest to nod in a free kick from Danny Murphy.
Marcel Desailly equalised x minutes later with a header from a Jesper Gronkjaer cross. The Dane would go from provider to scorer in the x minute.
In the x minute, Mario Melchiot took a throw in out wide on the right wing. Eidur Gudjohnsson returned the ball straight back to Melchiot who played a first time ball to Grokjaer, who stood just outside the Liverpool penalty area.
The Dane managed to get past Liverpool defender Jon Arne Riise and hit a curling effort towards the far corner as Salif Diao raced in to challenge him.
The ball curled around Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek and into the back of the net. The Chelsea fans who were in the stands at Stamford Bridge roared with delight. Little did they know that the goal would have on their club and English football.
Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich was looking to buy a football club in the summer of 2003. Rumour has it that he narrowed his choices down to three clubs – Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea.
Because Chelsea were in the Champions League, he decided that he would buy the Stamford Bridge club. He has pumped hundreds of millions of pounds into the club over the last eighteen years, which has helped win the club numerous trophies.
Money became more of an issue as other clubs tried desperately to keep up with the free-spending Chelsea. Manchester City would later be taken over by another billionaire and the money involved in the game has completely changed the game.
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