Istanbul might have been a miracle, but for his next trick Rafael Benitez knew that he had to do something really special.
Now European champions in the summer of 2005, Liverpool had set about trying to close the 37-point Premier League gap that existed between them and Chelsea, although that was always pretty unlikely.
The Blues had added another £50m worth of talent on top of what they already had, and with Liverpool still shopping in a different market under the dwindling ownership of David Moores, the squad didn’t look strong enough to sustain a title challenge, not that one ever materialised.
