Liverpool have such an illustrious history within Europe that it’s hard to believe we were once the new kids on the block regarding the continental competition but that was once certainly true.
Speaking about the first ever European Cup match played by the club, against KR Reykjavik in August 1964, Gordon Wallace shared a fascinating tale on ‘The Football Historian Podcast‘:
“On the Monday night we we were in Iceland playing Reykjavik in the first ever European match in Liverpool [history] and we won 5-0.
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“I scored two two that night but I was credited with the scoring the first ever European Cup goal in Liverpool’s history.”
As Bill Shankly’s side brought a five-goal lead back to Merseyside on their plane home that evening, few would have realised the success that was to come for the Reds in the future of that competition.
The 80-year-old telling the story has paved the way for the likes of Mo Salah and Steven Gerrard to surpass his scoring record but there will only ever be one player to score the first goal in Europe.
You can watch Wallace’s full story about making Liverpool history (from 34:19) via The Football Historian Podcast on YouTube:
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