 Match programme cover | |||||||
| Event | UEFA Super Cup | ||||||
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| Date | 24 August 2001 | ||||||
| Venue | Stade Louis II,Monaco | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Michael Owen (Liverpool)[1] | ||||||
| Referee | Vítor Melo Pereira (Portugal)[2] | ||||||
| Attendance | 13,824[3] | ||||||
←2000 2002 → | |||||||
The2001 UEFA Super Cup was afootball match between German teamBayern Munich and English teamLiverpool on 24 August 2001 atStade Louis II, the annualUEFA Super Cup contested between the winners of theUEFA Champions League andUEFA Cup. Bayern were appearing in the Super Cup for the third time, their two previous appearances in1975 and1976 had ended in defeat. Liverpool were appearing in their fourth Super Cup, they won the competition in1977, and lost twice in1978 and1984.
The teams had qualified for the competition by winning the two seasonal European competitions. Both Bayern and Liverpool beat Spanish teams in the finals of the competitions. Bayern won the2000–01 UEFA Champions League, defeatingValencia 5–4 in apenalty shoot-out after the match had finished1–1. Liverpool won the2000–01 UEFA Cup, beatingAlavés5–4.
Watched by a crowd of 13,824, Liverpool took the lead in the first half whenJohn Arne Riise scored. Liverpool extended their lead before half-time whenEmile Heskey scored. Liverpool scored immediately after the start of the second half to lead the match 3–0 afterMichael Owen scored.Hasan Salihamidžić andCarsten Jancker scored in the second half, but Liverpool held out until the end of the match to win 3–2, their second Super Cup win.
Bayern Munich qualified for the Super Cup as the reigningUEFA Champions League winners. They had won the2000–01 UEFA Champions League beatingValencia 5–4 in apenalty shoot-out after the match had finished1–1.[4] It would be Bayern's third appearance in the Super Cup. Their two previous appearances in1975 and1976 againstDynamo Kiev andAnderlecht respectively had both ended in defeat.[5]
Liverpool had qualified for the Super Cup as a result of winning the2000–01 UEFA Cup. They had beatenAlavés5–4 to win their thirdUEFA Cup.[6] Liverpool were appearing in their fourth Super Cup. They had previously won the competition in1977 beatingHamburger SV. The two other appearances in1978 and1984 had resulted in losses to Anderlecht andJuventus respectively.[5]
Both sides had played several matches already, Bayern had already played four matches in the2001–02 Bundesliga and were fifth. They had won two matches, drew one and lost one.[7] Liverpool had played two legs in the third qualifying round of the2001–02 UEFA Champions League. They beat Finnish teamFC Haka 9–1 onaggregate.[8] As winners of the2000–01 FA Cup, Liverpool facedManchester United in the2001 FA Charity Shield, which they won 2–1.[9] Liverpool had also played one match in the2001–02 FA Premier League; a 2–1 win overWest Ham United.[10]
Bayern and Liverpool had injury concerns ahead of the match. Four members of Bayern's Champions League winning side were missing through injury.Mehmet Scholl,Stefan Effenberg,Paulo Sérgio andJens Jeremies were all unavailable for selection for the German side. Liverpool were withoutPatrik Berger after he had undergone surgery on his knee.[11] Despite being injured for Liverpool's previous matches,Steven Gerrard was expected to feature.[12]
Bayern kicked off, but Liverpool had the first chance of the match.Michael Owen crossed the ball into thepenalty area from the right side of the pitch towardsEmile Heskey, whose shot was deflected out for a corner.[13] Bayern responded immediately, althoughOwen Hargreaves' shot went high over the Liverpool goal.[14] Nine minutes after the start of the match, Liverpool were awarded afree kick after a foul byRobert Kovač on Owen. The free-kick taken byGary McAllister was met byMarkus Babbel, but he headed over the goal.[14] With more fouls starting to occur, the first booking was awarded in the 14th minute. Liverpool midfielderDietmar Hamann was shown ayellow card after he tackledHasan Salihamidžić from behind.[14] Bayern started to control the match midway through the first-half, however it was Liverpool who scored the first goal of the match. Liverpool defenderJohn Arne Riise dispossessed Hargreaves, McAllister took control of the loose ball and passed toSteven Gerrard. Gerrard's pass to Owen meant he was in space down the right side of the pitch, Owen put a low-cross into the penalty area, which by-passed Heksey but found Riise who scored to give Liverpool the lead.[13]
Bayern were immediately on the attack following Liverpool's goal. A foul on Bayern defenderBixente Lizarazu by Gerrard resulted in a free-kick for Bayern. The subsequent free-kick taken byCiriaco Sforza was headed over the Liverpool goal byPablo Thiam.[14] Liverpool regrouped and their next attack almost resulted in another goal. Heskey's pass to Owen put him clear of the Bayern defence and one-on-one withOliver Kahn. Owen attempted to chip the ball over Kahn, however the Bayern goalkeeper was able to save the shot.[14] Immediately afterwards Bayern were on the attack. Bayern defenderWilly Sagnol held off Riise and the crossed the ball into the penalty area, the cross was met byGiovane Élber whose header went wide of the Liverpool goal.[14] With the first half coming to an end, Liverpool had another attack. Hamann passed the ball to Heskey on the edge of the Bayern penalty area, Heskey subsequently moved past Bayern defender'sThomas Linke and Kovač, and shot low beyond Kahn to give Liverpool a 2–0 lead.[13]
Liverpool kicked off the second half, and within 13 seconds they had scored to lead the match 3–0. Liverpool defenderJamie Carragher kicked the ball into the Bayern half, defender Thiam missed his header, which meant the ball dropped to Owen, who controlled the ball with his right foot and then put the ball into the Bayern goal with his left foot.[13] Bayern reduced the deficit in the 57th minute when Salihamidžić scored. He headed the ball into the Liverpool goal from Bayern's first corner of the match to reduce the deficit to two goals.[14] Midway through the half both teams made substitutions. Bayern replaced Sforza,Claudio Pizarro and Salihamidžić forNiko Kovač,Carsten Jancker andRoque Santa Cruz respectively. Liverpool substituted Gerrard and Riise forIgor Bišćan andDanny Murphy respectively.[14] Liverpool started to pass the ball around their midfield and defence in an attempt to waste time, however in the 82nd minute Bayern scored again. Substitute Jancker headed into the Liverpool goal from a cross by Elber.[13] Immediately afterwards Bayern had an opportunity to equalise, however Lizarazu's shot was straight at Liverpool goalkeeperSander Westerveld. No further goals were scored and the referee blew for full-time with the final score 3–2 to Liverpool.[15]
Bayern Munich | 2–3 |  Liverpool |
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Salihamidžić 57'Jancker 82' | Report | Riise 23' Heskey 45'Owen 46' |
          Bayern Munich |    Liverpool |
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Man of the Match: Assistant referees: | Match rules
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Liverpool's victory meant that they had won five competitions in five months, after winning theFA Cup,Football League Cup andUEFA Cup during the2000–01 season and theFA Charity Shield at the start of the current season. ManagerGérard Houllier congratulated his players on their achievements: "I must congratulate the players for what they achieved in these six months. We know we are not perfect and we will continue to improve. But the team have shown they possess the winning edge, and this is what we have tried to develop." Man of the match Owen received a £10,000 cheque from match sponsorsCarlsberg to be forwarded to a charity of his choice.[16]
Bayern's loss in the Super Cup extended German clubs' winless streak in the competition to seven editions. ManagerOttmar Hitzfeld admitted that his team needed time to co-ordinate their defence: "It took us time to get into top gear and to organise ourselves. And when you are too slow playing a team like Liverpool, then you expect to get punished."[16] Hitzfeld was critical of his players, stating that "individual mistakes cost us the match" and praised man of the matchMichael Owen, stating that Bayern "could not counter his threat."[16]
See page 18
