Borussia Monchengladbach vs Liverpool would be a special game. That’s according to Gladbach director Max Eberl ahead of the Champions League draw.
Borussia Monchengladbach squeezed through their Champions League group this week. They lost 2-0 to Real Madrid but after Internazionale and Shakhtar Donetsk drew, the German qualified anyway.
Gladbach upset the odds in that group, then. They were the fourth-seeded team and few would have predicted qualification. In fact, they were the only pot 4 team to qualify.
And now Gladbach director Max Eberl is looking forward to the Champions League draw next week. Liverpool, he says, would continue to put this season in a special light.
“If we’re already playing this historic Champions League season with historical opponents like Inter and Real, then Liverpool would fit in seamlessly and continue to put this whole season in a special light,” he said, per Rheinische Post.
What RTK has to say
There are two things at play here. Firstly, we wholeheartedly agree that facing the elite clubs is what makes European competition special.
Liverpool didn’t qualify for years and there was nothing quite like finally meeting Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Real.
But it’s more than that to Gladbach – there’s a history.
The Germans actually have a European history with both Inter and Real. But their most heart-breaking defeat involved Liverpool.
The two teams met in the 1973 UEFA Cup final. It was the first appearance for both, too, and played over two legs.
Liverpool came away triumphant, however, winning 3-0 at Anfield and just about seeing Gladbach off after a 2-0 defeat in Germany.
Coincidentally, the two would meet two years later, as well. This time it was in the1977 European Cup final – the biggest game on the club stage and the first appearance for both once more.
Liverpool won quite comfortably, though – 3-1. It started a string of four European Cups in seven years for the Reds.
As for Gladbach, that was their pinnacle in a golden era. They went into that final having won the Bundesliga five times in eight years, including in 1977.
But they’ve never won it since. Nor have they ever reached the European Cup or Champions League final again.
So Liverpool are more than just a glamour tie to Gladbach. They represent the final hurdle they fell at during their greatest era.
A meeting in 2021 would certainly be special.
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