THRILLER IN ANFIELD AS LIVERPOOL CONJURES MIRACLE

Liverpool 4-3 Borussia Dortmund (5-4 agg): Dejan Lovren, Mamadou Sakho, Phillipe Coutinho and Divock Origi haul Jurgen Klopp's men into Europa League semi-finals

• Henrikh Mkhitaryan gave Borussia Dortmund a dream start by drilling home from close range after five minutes
• Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang doubled the lead after nine minutes with a clinical finish in the penalty area 
• Divock Origi pulled a goal back for Liverpool three minutes into the second half with a composed strike 
• A stunning Marco Reus goal looked to have killed the tie before Philippe Coutinho scored another for Liverpool
• Mamadou Sakho headed home from close range on 77 minutes and suddenly, Liverpool were only a goal away 
• Dejan Lovren had the final say, rising highest to head home at the back post in the 91st minute

Spirit. Passion. Will. Longing. Sometimes raw emotion is enough, after all. Borussia Dortmund had the class, but Liverpool had something more. Something indefinable. Something that cannot be taught in coaching manuals, or captured in replays or revealed by reams of statistical analysis.

Something that lifted them beyond. Something that propelled them towards the realms of the fantastic. They were beaten.

They were done. And then they were not. Somehow, they returned from the beyond. Call it the spirit of Istanbul. Call it whatever you may, for nothing quite compares. This wasn’t even about Jurgen Klopp. This was about Liverpool: a club who never know when a cause is lost, and certainly not in Europe. 

Dortmund are a superb side. In the opening 10 minutes they had rocked Anfield to the foundations with the audacity of their play. Yet Liverpool destroyed them. Not beautifully, not by matching Dortmund’s at times gorgeous technique. Liverpool have good players, of course, but this was about a more elusive quality — an X factor.

It is a hoary old cliche but Liverpool just wanted it more. They wanted it so much it hurt. For by the end, from the effort alone, it must have hurt.

Why? Because Liverpool didn’t beat fools or flukes or mugs. For long periods Dortmund demonstrated a level of ability that would probably win our Premier League. Their first-half display was close to a masterclass. So wearing them down was an extraordinary task.

MATCH FACTS FROM ANFIELD 

Liverpool: Mignolet, Clyne, Lovren, Sakho, Moreno, Lallana (Allen, 62), Milner, Can (Lucas, 81), Coutinho, Firmino (Sturridge, 62), Origi. 

Subs not used: Ward, Skrtel, Smith, Ojo.

Goals: Origi 48, Coutinho 66, Sakho, 77, Lovren, 91.

Borussia Dortmund: Weidenfeller, Piszczek, Papastathopoulos, Hummels, Schmelzer, Mkhitaryan, Castro (Ramos, 82), Weigl, Reus (Gundogan, 82), Kagawa, Aubameyang. 

Subs not used: Burki, Bender, Sahin, Pulisic, Ginter.

Goals: Mkhitaryan 5, Aubameyang 9, Reus 57. 

Referee: Cuneyt Cakir