Football FanCast brings you another top ten list, this time, featuring the greatest and most unexpected comebacks of all time. Find out who makes the number one spot below-
10. Peterborough 4-4 Cardiff City, 2010
What does a manager say at half-time to a side bottom of the Championship and 4-0 down at home? That’s the position former Peterborough manager Mark Cooper found himself in during a league game at London Road last December.
Changes were made at half-time and The Posh fought back to make it 4-3 with one minute left on the clock through winger George Boyd. Substitute Josh Simpson then grabbed the dramatic equaliser in extra-time. A perplexed Cooper said after the game:
“I didn’t say a lot to the players at half-time – in fact, I thought about getting in my car and going home!”
9. Turkey 3-2 Czech Republic, 2008
EURO 2008 Comeback Kings Turkey scored two goals in the last five minutes to qualify for the knockout stages in Austria & Switzerland, at the expense of opponents Czech Republic.
At 2-0 down with 15 minutes left to play it seemed as though Turkey were heading home. The momentum changed however when Arda Turan made it 2-1. Two late goals from striker Nihat Kahveci secured the unlikely comeback and sent the Turkish fans into ecstasy.
8. West Germany 3-2 England, 1970
Reigning champions England looked comfortable defending a two-goal lead in their World Cup Quarter-Final against West Germany in 1970. Goals from Alan Mullery and Martin Peters had put England in the driving seat
Sir Alf Ramsey then took off star man Bobby Charlton to ‘rest’ him for the semi-finals. The gamble back-fired spectacularly when Germany fought back to level the scores before German legend Gerd Muller scored the winner in extra-time to complete a sensational comeback.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_6EEAwm-cE
Click here for PAGE 2 and some real thrillers…
7. Tottenham 3-5 Manchester United, 2001
Tottenham Hotspur were in dreamland after racing into a 3-0 first-half lead, totally outplaying reigning champions Manchester United at White Hart Lane in 2001.
After some Fergie hairdryer treatment at half-time, The Reds were a side transformed in the second-half as Andy Cole, Laurent Blanc, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Juan Sebastian Veron and David Beckham scored to complete the remarkable comeback.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2MHphmbp1E
6. Werder Bremen 5-3 Anderlecht, 1994
Belgian side Anderlecht even surprised themselves when after 66 minutes they found themselves 3-0 up away to German side Werder Bremen in the Champions League group stages in 1994.
No-one could have predicted what happened next however with Werder demonstrating that famed German spirit to pull back an astonishing five goals in 23 rollercoaster minutes. A classic Champions League encounter.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7S9O1aoytc
5. Tottenham 3-4 Man City, 2004
Ten-man Manchester City pulled of arguably the greatest FA Cup comeback of all-time at White Hart Lane in 2004. Goals from defender Ledley King, Irishman Robbie Keane and a Christian Ziege free-kick put Spurs 3-0 up after 43 minutes.
Midfield enforcer Joey Barton was then sent-off just before half-time and coach Kevin Keegan would have been thinking about damage limitation as he headed to the dressing room. City amazingly managed to level the scores with a fight-back of epic proportions, before forgotten man John Macken headed in a looping 90th minute winner.
A blown away Keegan said after the game:
“They’ll talk about this game long after we’ve all gone”
4. Charlton 7-6 Huddersfield, 1957
It’s not often you see your side score six goals and still lose a game of football. Indeed, no side before or since, has ever managed it since.
That is exactly what happened to Bill Shankly’s Huddersfield side that at one stage had held a 5-1 lead over ten-men Charlton. The Addicks then fired in five goals in 19 minutes before The Terriers drew level at 6-6. With seconds left, four-goal hero Johnny Summers crossed for John ‘Buck’ Ryan to make it an unbelievable 7-6. Shankly allegedly didn’t talk to anyone for days after the game. Read the match report HERE.
Click here to find out the TOP 3 football comebacks of all time…
3. Manchester United 2-1 Bayern Munich, 1999
Despite only overturning a one-goal deficit, the timing and manner of Manchester United’s dramatic Champions League win over Bayern Munich in 1999 ensures this crazy night at Barcelona’s Nou Camp goes down as one of the greatest comebacks of all-time.
Trailing for most of the match to Mario Basler’s sixth minute strike, substitutes Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer both scored in injury-time to secure an unprecedented Treble for United. “Name on the trophy!”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JybopUgbvfE
2. Angola 4-4 Mali, 2010
The opening game of the African Cup of Nations produced one of the most spectacular comebacks ever seen in football. Host nation Angola were cruising at 4-0 with 11 minutes left before Mail scored four times to level the game, with striker Mustapha Yatabare netting the equaliser in the last-minute of extra-time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhWeSypwQ7Q
1. AC Milan 3-3 Liverpool, 2005
Liverpool pulled off the greatest comeback of all-time in the 2005 Champions League Final against Italian side AC Milan. 3-0 down at half-time and sinking without a trace, The Reds scored three goals in an astonishing seven-minute second-half spell.
Ukrainian Andriy Shevchenko then missed from point-blank range before The Reds clinched their fifth European Cup with a penalty shootout victory. Watch the epic encounter in the brilliant video below.
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