While Liverpool fans across the globe would have breathed a huge sigh of relief come the final whistle on Sunday, so too would have the Reds' owners.
The financial impact that Liverpool and owners Fenway Sports Group would have had to bear would have been significant, especially as they continue to have to deal with the financial distress caused by the pandemic, where the Reds posted a £46m loss before tax in their 2020 accounts, something that will likely be a greater figure when the 2021 accounts are published next year.
Champions League football is so valuable on so many levels.
The prize money and TV rights involved, the ability to leverage taking part to appeal to commercial partners, as well as being able to better compete in the transfer market and be able to meet the desires of stars on the payroll who want to be a part of European football's elite knockout competition for their own careers and their own brands.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp lead his team to Champions League glory in 2019 and followed it up with a Premier League title in 2020. This season has been one littered with struggle throughout but, somehow, Klopp and his patched up side managed to get over the finish line in third spot.
Chelsea's defeat on Sunday to Aston Villa meant that Liverpool made the leap into third, providing the best possible ending to a campaign of such tumult.
That meant an extra £2m in the prize pot domestically, the Reds bringing in £34m for finishing third. That figure is £4m less than what they achieved by winning the league last season.
But it is the Champions League where the true value lies for the Reds, at least financially, and FSG's part in the doomed European Super League had been motivated by the desire to have the kind of financial benefits that come with the Champions League without the risk of missing out after a poor season on the pitch.
For some time it had appeared as if Liverpool were heading for the Europa League, their January form sending them tumbling down the table. But it was addressed and the Reds arrested the slide to rally when they needed to most. Their late show of strength on the pitch has provided FSG more room to breathe when it comes to what they may do in terms of transfer business in the summer, the carrot of Champions League participation meaning they remain an attractive proposition to Europe's top talent.
The Champions League prize fund is made up of a number of different factors. From the money on offer for winning, drawing and progressing from the group stages into the knockout phases, to the broadcasting rights shared through the market pool and the co-efficient rankings of each club based upon historical performance in European competition.
For 2020/2021, Liverpool received £20.75m (€24m) through the UEFA club co-efficient payments, their 2019 win helping to bump that figure up from £15.6m (€18m) the previous year. And with the Reds having reached the quarter final in 2021 that figure should broadly stay the same.
It is the money that will be received through the market pool that will be aided by finishing third.
The market pool is the distribution of funds across leagues based on the total value of their TV rights for the Champions League, with the domestic performance of clubs taken into account.
Liverpool pocketed around £18.5m for last season by virtue of them winning the Premier League and taking a larger share of the market pool, while finishing third will bring in £14.4m as opposed to the £11.3m that would have been secured with a fourth placed finish. With the extra £2m from finishing in third from the Premier League it hands the Reds a £5.1m boost just on Sunday's results alone.
Missing out on the Champions League altogether, just from a financial perspective, could have cost the club dearly had they had to settle for the Europa League.
The money to be distributed to by UEFA to clubs in the Europa League stands at around £483m, a figure that is dwarfed by the £2.2bn the Champions League has to dish out.
Money paid out based on co-efficient rankings is also considerably less, with the pot at £72.4m to be distributed based on historical performance compared to the £504m the Champions League can hand out across competing clubs. The highest figure that is available to clubs through the co-efficient payment is £2.95m.
The market pool is also dwarfed in the Europa League, with the fund standing at £145m compared to the Champions League's £252m, with the market pool fund for competing clubs determined by the proportional value of each TV market represented by the clubs taking part.
The remarkable events of the past week or so, from Alisson's last-gasp header to Liverpool being the only club to do what needed to be done when the chips were down on Sunday, provides the club and owners FSG with a far firmer financial footing heading into next season and allows them to better manage the impact of the pandemic.
But FSG should also know that it removes an excuse when this summer arrives in terms of not handing Klopp at least something of a war chest to try and push for better next season and make sure that the failings of this season have been learned from.
