ON THIS DAY: MAY 23

ON THIS DAY: MAY 23, 1973 Steve Hunter

23 May 2008

Liverpool won their first ever European trophy as the Reds

beat German side Borussia Moenchengladbach 3-2 on

aggregate to win the UEFA Cup. It was a sweet victory

for Bill Shankly's side and it was the stepping stone for

the Reds to start conquering Europe. Despite losing the

second leg 2-0, Shankly's side earned their victory after

a 3-0 win in the first leg at Anfield. It was a tense second

leg in Germany as Borussia scored twice in the first half,

but a defence inspired by Emlyn Hughes held out to give

the Reds glory. Elsewhere on this day in LFC history AC

Milan gained some form of revenge for Liverpool's Istanbul

glory when they beat Rafa Benitez's side 2-1 in the Champions

League final Athens last season. Dirk Kuyt's late goal proved

a mere consolation as two goals from Filippo Inzaghi earned

the Italians victory.