On 25 May 1977, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Liverpool beat Borussia Mönchengladbach 3-1 and lifted the European Cup for the first time. On 25 May 2027 it will be 50 years since that night. It was the start of the club's most glorious European era.

Two champions by a single point

Both teams had won their domestic league by just one point and were playing in a final of the competition for the first time. They had met before, though: in the 1973 UEFA Cup final Liverpool had won 3-2 on aggregate.

Bob Paisley's Liverpool knocked out Crusaders, Trabzonspor, Saint-Étienne and Zürich. The return leg against the French at Anfield, decided by substitute David Fairclough, is considered one of the club's most unforgettable European nights.

Udo Lattek's Gladbach went past Austria Wien, Torino, Club Brugge and Dynamo Kyiv. They wanted to become the second German team to win the trophy, after Bayern, who had won it the three previous years.

Rome turns into Liverpool

A few days earlier Liverpool had lost the FA Cup final to Manchester United, and with it the treble. Many feared the team would be broken, but Neal saw Rome as the chance to bounce back.

In the stands, however, there were around 24,000 English fans according to the Guardian, while Terry McDermott remembered "at least 30,000". With red-and-white chequered flags and songs from Merseyside, the Olimpico felt like a home ground. One of their banners, full of food puns, "celebrated" the European adventures of defender Joey Jones.

Red against green

The colours were clear. Liverpool wore their all-red strip, with white detail on the neck. Gladbach appeared in green, with green shorts and white socks.

The final also left its mark on shirt design. In 2016 Liverpool released an away kit inspired by the designs on the cover of that match's programme.

The match: three goals for history

Gladbach started strongly and Rainer Bonhof hit the post. In the 28th minute Steve Heighway played the pass and McDermott slotted into the corner for 1-0.

In the 51st minute a stray pass by Jimmy Case gave Allan Simonsen his chance, and he equalised with a powerful shot. A little later Ray Clemence saved a shot by Uli Stielike and kept Liverpool in the game.

In the 65th minute veteran Tommy Smith rose highest to a Heighway corner and headed in for 2-1. Shortly before the end Berti Vogts brought Keegan down in the box and Phil Neal scored from the spot for 3-1.

Keegan, Smith and Paisley

It was Kevin Keegan's last game for Liverpool before leaving for Hamburg. Paisley had warned him that Vogts would mark him tightly, and he kept running to the very end, until he won the penalty. On a warm, heavy evening, the experienced German ended up worn out.

For Smith it was his 600th appearance for the club and his first goal of the season. Paisley said it was his greatest moment, and captain Emlyn Hughes lifted the cup with a big smile.

The eleven that night were Clemence, Neal, Jones, Smith, Hughes, Case, Kennedy, Callaghan, McDermott, Keegan and Heighway. As Neal took the penalty, Ian Callaghan was photographed with his hands clasped as if in prayer. The picture went round the newspapers.

Why it went down in history

Paisley became the first manager to win the UEFA Cup and the European Cup in successive seasons. Liverpool defended the title the following year too, by then without Keegan.

For Gladbach it was a second defeat by Liverpool in a European final within four years, but Simonsen won the Ballon d'Or at the end of 1977. And Keegan? Three years later he played with Hamburg in another final, which they lost to Nottingham Forest.

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Photo: Kevin Keegan in Zürich, April 1977 – ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Comet Photo AG, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 4.0.