You wouldn’t have guessed Melbourne Victory were playing a home game, when the MCG was a sea of red. Only a team like Liverpool could have brought out over 95,446 fans for a sport the state considers secondary to AFL.

Amazingly, the match was the third highest soccer attendance in Australian history, beating the crowd for the Manchester United match two weeks ago.

Victorian Premier Denis Napthine was overwhelmed by the show. “[The] game had the biggest attendance at a Liverpool FC match in its 120 year history,” he said. “They were also the largest ever soccer crowd to convene at the iconic stadium.”

Every bar, hotel and restaurant near the MCG was packed last Wednesday, enabling those without tickets to get a feel for the electric atmosphere in the stadium.

Those lucky enough to grab a ticket rushed into the stadium early to sing a roaring rendition of Liverpool’s You’ll Never Walk Alone.
Liverpool coach Brendan Rogers was stunned by the crowd, saying at a press conference after the match hearing the anthem sung like that was a “tearjerker”.

Melbourne Victory, despite fielding a young team, were amazing during the first half of the match, controlling the ball with a few tricks. Coach Ange Postecoglou said his young team took the match in their stride, saying he was “more frightened than they were” before they hit the pitch.

A Liverpool fan himself, Postecoglou mentioned that seeing the team play up close was an invaluable learning experience.

Youngster Connor Pain was the team’s star – despite flying back from Socceroos duties, jet lag wasn’t an issue. Despite admitting he was a little “starstruck” – he even asked for a Liverpool player’s jersey after the match – the former Bentleigh Greens player had a chance to score and kept the ball in Victory’s hands for a good part of the game.

He was one of seven players under the age of 21 in Postecoglou’s starting line-up, and amazingly produced a more cohesive and solid play than the A-League All-Stars.

The team even produced a better result, with most of the match deadlocked in a 1-0 score, until the 72nd minute goal, helped by superstar Luis Suarez’s kick.

Young Greek Australian Jesse Makarounas even started for the team, showing good signs of improvement under Postecoglou’s tutelage. Despite having the great Steven Gerrard right next to him, Makarounas looked like nerves weren’t an issue and fought for the ball valiantly. Bumping into the youngster after the match, you could see signs that he was still taking in the night’s events, with a smile never leaving his face.

Liverpool didn’t stay for long – already the team is in Thailand to finish up their pre-season tour.