Liverpool vs Atletico Madrid was decisive soccer moment before world changed forever

Liverpool’s meetings with Atletico Madrid rarely pass by quietly, but few fans who arrived at Anfield for their meeting in 2020 could have imagined what sort of effect the game would have - and not just for both clubs.

The two sides do battle once again at Anfield on Wednesday as the Champions League returns, with Arne Slot’s side aiming to make the perfect start to this season’s league phase and make the first step toward the final in Budapest.

Much of the focus ahead of this latest meeting surrounds Alexander Isak’s potential debut. Five years ago, there was something very different dominating the headlines.

Having lost the first leg 1-0 in Madrid in February, Liverpool took on Atletico in the return leg nearly a whole month later, and with the global landscape well on the way to its most significant event in decades.

In between the two games, Covid-19 had spread rapidly. Sporting events across Europe were being dramatically impacted, especially in Italy, which had become the epicenter for the virus on the continent.

The same day that Liverpool hosted Atletico, Arsenal’s Premier League game against Manchester City was postponed after several of the Gunners’ squad went into self-isolation, while Valencia’s Champions League game against Atalanta was played without fans, with La Liga games being moved behind closed doors.

Yet, very little changed in Liverpool. For the 60,000 or so fans traveling to Anfield - including 3,000 supporters from Madrid - the focus was on who would claim a spot in the quarterfinals.

"Everyone was aware of what was going on," former Liverpool physio Chris Rohrbeck told BBC Sport back in 2021. "But we were behind in the tie, and we needed to push it away.

"We had to go by what the politicians were saying. We were so busy preparing that there was no point thinking of anything else."

Just a few hours before kick-off though, there was no escaping what was becoming a global crisis. At 4:30 pm UK time, the World Health Organisation had declared Covid as a pandemic.

Still, there was little evidence of any sort of panic at Anfield. The game went ahead, and provided as much drama as is customary for European nights at the iconic ground.

Liverpool managed to take the game to extra time thanks to Gini Wijnaldum’s first-half goal, and the Reds looked as though they would be heading for the quarterfinals when Roberto Firmino put them ahead in the tie just four minutes into the extra period.

But then the game unraveled for the hosts. Adrian’s attempted clearance gifted Marcos Llorente a way back, and with the away goals rule still in use at that time, suddenly Liverpool - the defending European and world champion - was heading out of the competition.

Things got worse for the Reds, with Llorente scoring again before the end of the first period of extra time, leaving Jurgen Klopp’s side needing two goals in 15 minutes if they were to turn things around. Instead, Alvaro Morata wrapped up a famous win for Atletico right at the death, sparking wild celebrations among the visiting Spanish supporters.

Liverpool’s European dream was over for the season, but that was nothing compared to what would develop over the following days.

Soccer was brought to a grinding halt, with the Reds particularly cautious about what that could mean for their Premier League title hopes. The true cost of that night against Atletico though was yet to truly be discovered as, less than two weeks later, a national lockdown was announced across the UK, with the whole world effectively brought to a standstill.

By the end of March 2020, Liverpool had become a hotspot for the virus, with the city holding one of the highest suspected number of cases in the country, and the game against Atletico was suspected to have been one of the main factors in that.

Indeed, a subsequent investigation found that it was one of two major sporting events in the UK that week, along with the Cheltenham Festival, that “caused increased suffering and death” due to the virus.

Serious questions have been asked since about why the game went ahead, or why, at the very least, supporters were not prevented from attending.

As Liverpool and Atletico meet once again, this time in very different circumstances, the game will nevertheless bring back some painful memories of what transpired thereafter across the world, and a situation in Liverpool that could - and should - have been avoided.