Former Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier has explained why the Anfield crowd is so crucial to pulling their team through on big European nights and declared that he never doubted the Reds would knock out Barcelona once their first goal had gone in on Tuesday night.
The Frenchman, who steered the club to UEFA Cup success in 2001 as part of a cup treble that season after also securing the League Cup and FA Cup, believes that there is a special connection between Liverpool's players and their passionate supporters that makes life difficult for opponents playing in front of the Kop – even the likes of Lionel Messi and company.
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Now 71, Houllier who used to attend Reds matches while working at Alsop Comprehensive School - almost three decades before he took charge of their team – told talkSPORT : “I don’t know why but I had a feeling they could go through, even after the game in Barcelona.
“They were very unlucky at the Nou Camp and there is something special about this team and I had a strange feeling that they would go through.
“This club is something special with the fans. It’s not violent, it’s not aggressive but it’s very loud and it brings the players to attack.
“Once they scored the first goal I knew they would go through.
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“They looked practically irresistible and also it makes the opponents scared.
“For the last goal, Barcelona were absolutely frozen!”
