Manchester City’s abysmal run of five consecutive losses finally came to an end on Tuesday night.
Yet their 3-3 draw to Feyenoord left manager Pep Guardiola under even more pressure. City were leading 3-0 after 70 minutes and it seemed that their form may have returned just in time for their title clash against Liverpool this Sunday.
However, Feyenoord seemed to have other plans. A 15-minute blitz saw the Dutch side score three times to inflict another harrowing result on the reigning Premier League champions. It was the latest a side has ever been three goals down in the Champions League and not lost the game.
It was also the first time since 1989 that City have failed to win a game after taking a three-goal lead.
After a historic result for Feyenoord, FourFourTwo looks at some of the most famous games in Champions League history, where teams have been three goals ahead and failed to win.
Liverpool 3-3 AC Milan
The Miracle of Istanbul is well known to football fans across the globe and remains the only time in Champions League history a team has failed to win a 90-minute knockout match after being 3-0 up.
Maldini’s header, Crespo’s finishing, Gerrard’s heroics, Dudek’s saves and finally Shevchenko’s penalty miss – it was the final that had it all.
Barcelona 6-1 PSG
After being trounced by Paris Saint-Germain 4-0 in the first leg of the 2016/17 Champions League round of 16 Messi and co had little hope of making it through to their 10th consecutive Champions League quarter-final.
Three goals in 50 minutes gave them hope before Cavani’s second-half strike left them needing three goals to go through, thanks to the now-retired away-goal rule.
With three minutes to go, Neymar took matters into his own hands, scoring a beautiful free-kick and a penalty in the 91st minute before chipping an exquisite through-ball in for Sergi Roberto to complete La Remontada, sending Barcelona fans into rapture.
Roma 3-0 Barcelona
Just a year on from their historic comeback it was Barcelona’s turn to capitulate. After a 4-1 defeat at the Nou Camp Roma knew three goals were needed to ensure a win via the away-goals rule.
Edin Dzeko’s sixth-minute strike set the tone and after Danielle De Rossi’s second-half penalty, Roma’s impossible task was nearly complete.
Up stepped the most unlikely of heroes. Kostas Manolas towered above the Barcelona defence allowing Peter Drury to proclaim ‘Manolas the Greek God in Rome’.
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
Another game already well documented in the history books – and again it was Barcelona who suffered a dramatic defeat.
Liverpool were without Mo Salah and Roberto Firmino, but Divock Origi made sure Jurgen Klopp’s side did not miss them.
Origi and Gini Wijnaldum bagged twice to secure a 4-3 win on aggregate that sent Liverpool through to their second Champions League final in as many years.
Deportivo La Coruna 4-0 AC Milan
Three goals behind against an AC Milan side featuring Maldini, Cafu, Pirlo, Seedorf, Kaka and Shevchenko – not many would have given Deportivo La Coruna a chance and rightly so. But the Portuguese outfit managed to pull off one of the
Champions League’s greatest-ever comebacks, as they won 5-4 on aggregate in the 2003/4 quarter-final, having lost the first leg at the San Siro 4-1.
Alongside beating Monaco 8-3 in the group stages, their victory over AC Milan ensured their place in European football history as well as a fourth place in FourFourTwo’s best cult Champions League sides ever.
Other teams that lost after being three goals ahead
Since the Champions League was revamped in 1992 teams have come from three goals down to win in ninety minutes on just three occasions.
In the 1993/94 group stage, Werder Bremen had conceded three goals in 33 minutes to Anderlecht but came back to win a thriller 5-3.
Comeback kings Deportivo La Coruna were also three goals down against Paris Saint-Germain in the 2000–01 second group stage but managed to win the game 4–3.
The most recent instance of a three-goal deficit being overturned was in the 2009/10 qualifying round. Maccabi Haifa had been 3-0 down Aktobe after just 15 minutes of the second leg. The Israeli side secured a stunning turnaround to win 4–3 on aggregate.
Three goals up and you still don’t win?
Manchester City fans will be relieved to know that eight other teams, in the Champions League, have failed to win after being three goals ahead.
Of those eight teams, only one team has had the misfortune of being on the end of a spectacular comeback twice. Against both Besiktas and Inter Milan, in the 2016/17 and 2023/24 group stages respectively, Benfica were 3-0 up after 35 minutes before eventually drawing 3-3.
An English side has been involved in every other instance of a three-goal deficit being overturned, with Liverpool heavily involved in these.
The Miracle of Istanbul is arguably the most famous case of such a comeback, but Liverpool also managed to draw 3-3 after being 3-0 down to Basel in the 2002/3 group stage. Unfortunately for Gerard Houllier’s side, the comeback was not enough to keep them in the group stages.
Sevilla managed to get some revenge for AC Milan and Basel as they gave Liverpool a taste of their own medicine by coming from behind to draw 3-3 in the 2017-18 group stage, which included a 93rd-minute equaliser.
Arsenal also succumbed to a late comeback, drawing 3-3 to Anderlecht in 2014/15, whilst Chelsea were losing 4-1 to Ajax in 2019/20 but came away with a 4-4 draw.
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