This is the Blood Red Podcast from the Liverpool Echo, giving you the inside track on all the big talking points from Anfield.

In the autumn of 2004, things weren't perhaps as rosy as they could have been for

Raphael Benitez's Liverpool eight points behind fourth place Middlesborough yes Middlesborough

the Reds at eighth in the Premier League in Europe Liverpool led the way in the Premier League group topping group

group with 7 points from 4 games ahead of olympiarchos on goal difference.

Up next a trip to Monaco the previous season's beaten beaten 2-0 at Anfield on match day one.

I'm Guy Clark and this is the road to Istanbul here on Blood Red

as we retrace Liverpool steps to the Champions League final back in 2005

with the current European champions hoping to recreate that drama this summer.

Alongside me for the latest step on the road as usual is our resident

red Dan K Dan how are you I'm very lucky thanks guy yourself yeah not so bad we

weren't partnered on the last episode Stephen Warnock came into the the studio to reminisce on the game away in Deportiva, which proved to be a vital game in this campaign.

Well, it was particularly because Liverpool had reached the halfway point after the home draw against the span

against Depor on match day three with only four points from nine having lost in Greece and drawn at home to Deportivo after the opening win

against Monaco. So I do remember that fourth game of the group, Deportivo

way very much thinking that we've got, and I'm thinking

what, did Deple get to the semis the year before?

Yeah. I thought you, so they, you know, and they, that was the year they knocked AC Milan out with that fantastic

comeback from 4-1 down in the first leg.

So there was very much a feeling that kind of like if we don't get a result in Spain,

Europe could be over.

We could be looking at the Europa League.

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