Jermaine Pennant picks between 2007 Liverpool heroes and today’s stars as he relives Anfield wondergoal
- Peter Kenny Jones
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
Former Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant has compared the 2007 Champions League final side with today’s squad while also reflecting on one of his most memorable moments in a red shirt.
Speaking exclusively to The Football Historian on behalf of BetBrain, Pennant gave his verdict on past and present Reds — and revisited his stunning goal against Chelsea at Anfield.
Q&A with Jermaine Pennant
Picking between the 2007 Champions League Final team and today's squad
Q: Pepe Reina or Alisson Becker?
Alisson.
Q: Steve Finnan or Conor Bradley?
They are similar kind of players, so I’m gonna go Steve Finnan. He was Mr. 7/10 every week.
Q: Jamie Carragher or Ibrahima Konate?
I’m gonna go Carra.
Q: Daniel Agger or Virgil van Dijk?
I’m gonna go Virgil.
Q: John Arne Riise or Andy Robertson?
Unfortunately, it’s got to be Robbo.
Q: Javier Mascherano or Ryan Gravenberch?
Mascherano. Absolute dog — that’s what you need in that position.
Q: Xabi Alonso or Dominik Szoboszlai?
This is cruel… I have to go Xabi Alonso, man — he was a masterclass.
Q: Jermaine Pennant or Mohamed Salah?
Mo Salah — easy. Not even a question!
Q: Boudewijn Zenden or Cody Gakpo?
Oh no… I’m gonna have to go Bolo.
Q: Steven Gerrard or Florian Wirtz?
Stevie G.
Q: Dirk Kuyt or Hugo Ekitike?
Oh, dirty… I’m gonna go Hugo.
Q: Rafael Benitez or Arne Slot?
Rafa Benítez.
On his goal against Chelsea at Anfield
Q: Can you talk us through your goal and how it happened?
We had Peter Crouch up front and Steven Gerrard had the ball on the left side of midfield. He’s whipped one in and Michael Essien headed it away into my direction.
As it came to me, I controlled it. I wasn’t going to shoot at first — I was going to bring it down on my chest and maybe run at Ashley Cole — but it just wouldn’t come down.
So I was waiting and waiting, and he was closing me down, and I thought, you know what, I’m just going to hit this.
I’ve hit it kind of on the side of my right foot, so it had a bit of bend and dip. You probably do that 100 times and it maybe works once or twice, but I just caught it so clean.
It flew through the air, dipped over Petr Cech, hit the crossbar as well, and went in.
Anfield erupted. That was my first goal there as well, so what a way to score your first one. I’ll always remember that goal — even now people still talk to me about it.
On the 2007 Champions League final against AC Milan
Q: Is there a moment from that game you look back on?
There was one moment where I got to the byline and cut it back for Stevie G, but I lifted it a little bit too high.
I couldn’t put it on the floor because the defender slid in, so I had to dink it over him — but it just ended up a bit too high for him to connect properly.
If I could’ve played it on the ground, he would have run onto it and smashed it in.
I remember when I played it, he turned to me and said “lower, lower” — but I had to dink it, otherwise it was going out for a corner.
That always stuck with me, because he would have buried it.
So yeah, that’s probably the only thing.
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