Liverpool's 20 Best Moments of the 21st Century so Far

A lot can happen to a football club in a year—and at Liverpool, the good and bad seem to roll along more often than at most other clubs.

Since the turn of the century, the Reds have gone the same number of managers as they had in the previous 17 years, won multiple pieces of silverware, have had a horde of players from far-flung lands represent the previously largely home-isles-based team and have even changed the main shirt sponsor.

It's fair to say that Liverpool supporters are lucky to be able to witness grandiose events on a relatively regular basis—so for the "now generation" who demand instant success over long-term planning and sustainability, here's a rundown of the 20 best moments for Liverpool FC during the 21st century, just 13 short years so far.

20. 2003 League Cup Triumph

In 2003 Liverpool were back at it again in the League Cup, this time defeating big rivals Manchester United at Cardiff.

Steven Gerrard and Michael Owen were the goal heroes this time as the Reds took control of the game and thoroughly deserved their win. It was one of the final bright spots in the Gerard Houllier era, which went rather quickly downhill thereafter.

19. Transfer Record Broken, Fernando Torres in

Liverpool lost the 2007 Champions League final to AC Milan, but fans received some solace soon after with the news that the Reds were aiming big, and they signed Fernando Torres for around £20 million.

The Spanish striker was arguably the very best in the world for a time while he wore Red, scoring record-breaking numbers of goals in his first three seasons and showing himself as one of the most valuable players in the squad.

Though Torres' time at the club did not coincide with any silverware, the Reds were genuine challengers for the Premier League and the Champions League during his time, and he was easily capable of winning games on his own at times.

Injuries took their toll, as did broken promises, and Liverpool eventually sold him for £50 million to Chelsea—which some fans will say was his best gift to the club of all.

18. Houllier's Return vs. Roma

March 2002 witnessed a big night at Anfield, the return of manager Gerard Houllier to the dugout for the first time after his life-saving heart operation.

The boss had been absent since falling ill during a league match earlier in the season, and he returned to inspire Liverpool to a 2-0 Champions League win over Roma, thereby securing a 2-1 aggregate win and a clear path into the next round.

It was noisy, emotional and unforgettable as the crowd got right behind the manager and the players to produce a fearsome atmosphere and a special occasion.

17. Robbie's Return in 2006

Anyone associated with Liverpool Football Club will tell you that Robbie Fowler was, and remains, one of the biggest icons of the modern era. He was loved by the fans, related to the fans in a way that few players can and had bags of quality about him.

Fowler could score from absolutely anywhere, and his time at the club came to an end all too soon for everybody's liking.

In 2006, though, he was given a reprieve; Rafa Benitez signed him on a free transfer and Fowler spent the next 18 months back at the club he loved.

He didn't score as regularly as during his first spell at the club, but the finishing touches and the movement were still there, and during that initial half-season he was an important option for the team and got himself a few important strikes.

Best of all, he got the send-off he would have wanted first time around when he left the Anfield pitch to a standing ovation in the final league game of the 2006-07 season against Charlton Athletic.

16. Luis Suarez Really Announces Himself

Dirk Kuyt scored a hat-trick, but Luis Suarez was the star of the show.

He took six defensive players out of the game in one dribble to let Kuyt open the scoring for Liverpool against Manchester United at Anfield in March 2011, just five weeks after joining the Reds from Ajax.

Suarez had already scored his own goals for the team, but this was a top-class all-round performance against the Reds' biggest rivals and a team gunning for the title year on year; this was the moment the rest of the Kop, and the English league as a whole, realised that Liverpool did indeed have a big player on their hands.

The No. 7 had a big hand in Kuyt's second and third strikes too.

15. The Return of the King

After the ignominy and utter failure of Roy Hodgson's tenure, the Kop was in revolt, attendances were down and there seemed little way forward with the club united.

Step forward Kenny Dalglish.

He wasn't everybody's first choice to be the new long-term boss, but midway through a disastrous season he was certainly the only one who could come in and begin to knit things back together from within.

A calming influence in the dressing room and for the fans, Dalglish's first game back felt like a 6-0 victory—despite actually being a 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford.

14. League Cup Triumph in 2001: The Start of the Treble

Liverpool's journey to five trophies in six months under Gerard Houllier started early in the 2000-01 season, when the Reds went to Cardiff to play in the League Cup final against Birmingham City.

A quite sumptuous Robbie Fowler volley got things off to a good start, but Liverpool eventually needed a penalty shootout to defeat their opponents. It made things all the more exciting, looking back afterwards, but it was a nervy and worrisome afternoon for long stretches.

It was the first trophy under the sole reign of Houllier, but far from the last.

13. Beating Everton at Wembley

A big day out at Wembley for Merseyside; Liverpool were drawn against Everton in the semifinal of the 2011 FA Cup as both sides aimed for domestic cup glory.

The Reds trailed after a poor start, but Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll showed their best work as Kenny Dalglish's men turned it around in the second half. A derby-day win at Wembley is always a memorable occasion, and this was no exception.

12. Ending the Trophy Absence Under Kenny Dalglish

After Liverpool's FA Cup win in 2006, the Reds reached the Champions League final in 2007, but after losing they failed to secure further silverware from then onward.

From 2006 to 2011, there was no further addition to the trophy cabinet, but Kenny Dalglish put an end to that by winning the League Cup for Liverpool against Cardiff City at Wembley.

Much like against Birmingham in Cardiff a decade earlier, the Reds needed a penalty shootout to do it but emerged victorious after all.

11. Ousting George Gillett and Tom Hicks

Mere days, perhaps, from insolvency and going bankrupt, Liverpool finally managed to rid themselves of the poisonous ownership of Tom Hicks and George Gillett on October 15, 2010.

While the jury is still out on the new owners for some in terms of financial commitments to the playing staff and their plans for the new stadium or redevelopment of Anfield, there can be no doubt that the club is in a far healthier state now than it was two-and-a-half years ago.

No more Gillett and Hicks meant the club could start to turn itself around off the field, though much damage had already been done.

10. FA Cup Final Turnaround, 2001

Liverpool didn't deserve too much for their performance in the 2001 FA Cup final; Arsenal were the better side and could have been out of sight before they did actually take the lead.

In one of the most surprising and stunning turnarounds of the competition's history, Michael Owen spun and sprinted and twice stuck the ball past David Seaman—thereby nicking the trophy off the Gunners and keeping Liverpool on track for a magnificent treble.

9. UEFA Cup Triumph over Alaves

Liverpool's 2001 season was memorable for many reasons, and for many of the playing and coaching staff, the UEFA Cup final was the most incredible part of all.

A final against Alaves in Dortmund, Germany, started brilliantly for Liverpool, with Markus Babbel and Steven Gerrard scoring within a quarter of an hour. By half-time it was 3-1, but within moments of the restart it was 3-3. Robbie Fowler scored for 4-3, but a late Jordi Cruyff strike made it 4-4 and extra time loomed.

Gary McAllister delivered the free-kick that led to Delfi Geli's flicked header into his own net, and the most memorable cup final of the competition in recent times was secured in favour of the Reds.

8. Blitzing Real Madrid at Anfield

Liverpool were at their best during the 21st century—so far, at least—during the 2007-2009 period under Rafael Benitez.

Toward the end of that time, the Reds were nigh on unbeatable and took all their confidence, strength and quality to the Santiago Bernabeu where they beat Real Madrid 1-0 in the first leg in the Champions League.

Back at Anfield for the second leg, the Reds simply tore the famous Spanish side apart, hammering four goals without reply for a thumping 5-0 aggregate win.

It then got even better...

7. ...followed by Destruction of Manchester United at Old Trafford

...as the Reds went to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the Premier League just four days later.

Full of confidence and quality once more, United were next in line for a spanking as Liverpool ran out hugely convincing 4-1 winners in the back garden of their old enemy.

It was rather a good week for Liverpool supporters, and their side followed up these two wins by pulverising Aston Villa 5-0 in the very next game.

6. Champions League Victory Parade

The game itself is, of course, something else, but when Liverpool won the Champions League final in 2005, the homecoming parade that the players enjoyed from an open-topped bus was simply incredible.

Forget 70,000 people enjoying a parade in London, Kopites took to the streets to the tune of a cool one million in total, with more than a quarter of a million in the city centre alone. To be there and experience the adulation, the pride and the excitement was to be part of the club's innermost circle.

5. Steven Gerrard's 90th-Minute Equaliser, FA Cup Final 2006

It's 3-2 in the FA Cup final, with the last seconds of the 90 minutes ticking away.

It's just not meant to be, most would think at that point.

But when Steven Gerrard is on your side, anything is possible.

The Reds won the final in the end by way of a penalty shootout.

4. Olympiacos

Some moments live on in the memory for years, decades even.

The moment when Steven Gerrard hammered in Liverpool's vital third goal against Olympiacos is just one such event.

It sparked the Reds' run in the Champions League that ended in such majestic glory in Istanbul five months later.

3. The Full-Time Whistle at Anfield vs. Chelsea, UCL Semifinal Second Leg

Eight years on, we still don't know where six—six!—minutes of added time came from.

Liverpool were leading Chelsea 1-0 at Anfield in the UEFA Champions League semifinal second leg after 90 minutes, and with the clock ticking down, everybody in Red simply wanted the game to end.

The referee added on an incredible amount of time at the end of the match, and Chelsea poured forward time and time again, until Eider Gudjohnsen blasted a shot an inch wide of the far post in the final seconds of the match. The width of the post was about all that stopped the Reds making the final itself.

Moments later, though, the whistle did indeed go, and Anfield erupted as it meant the Reds were back in the big time. It took a mammoth effort from coaches, fans and players alike, but Liverpool had made it against all the odds.

2. Prime Minister's Apology for the Double Injustice of Hillsborough

It came 23 years too late for many, but this past year the truth about Hillsborough finally started to be exposed.

Prime Minister David Cameron delivered an official apology to the fans and the families of those who suffered and died as a result of the tragedy of 1989, and though the ultimate fight for justice goes on, the acknowledgement of the culpability falling elsewhere was a huge breakthrough for truth, and for those who had fought for so long.

It was as momentous a day off the pitch as Liverpool have had in the past two decades.

1. Jerzy Dudek Saves Penalty to Ensure Liverpool Are Crowned European Champions

Nothing, but nothing, can beat the moment of incredible realisation that Liverpool supporters the world over felt when Jerzy Dudek pushed Andriy Shevchenko's penalty away in Istanbul on May 25, 2005.

It meant that the Reds had beaten AC Milan in the penalty shootout; it meant that Liverpool were once more Champions of Europe.

A quite remarkable game had seen the Reds trail 3-0 at half-time, yet complete an historic turnaround after the break with goals from Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Smicer and Xabi Alonso.

Extra time, penalties and mass hysteria all thereby ensued, as an unforgettable evening played itself out in the most magical, astounding way possible.

Follow @karlmatchett