End of 2004/2005 Season Part 3

The FA Cup was won by Arsenal after a 0-0 draw with Manchester United they claimed the cup 5-4 on penalties. I didn't see much of the math but heard that United should have won as they completely dominated the 120 minutes.

Liverpool beat AC Milan in the Champions League final 3-2 on penalties after a thrilling 3-3 draw. Milan went 3-0 up in the first half but by the hour mark it was level. Benitez, Gerrard and Dudek were the main reasons behind the upturn in performance.

Although they are the champions, they will not be let into the Champions League next season (at time of writing). This is because they finished 5th in the Premiership behind Merseyside rivals Everton and the champions don't qualify automatically. This is not unlike the snooker situation where Shaun Murphy is not in the top 16 next season but gets exempt from qualifying because he is the world champion.

Surely UEFA could bring in a pre-qualifying round where Liverpool could face a lesser champion such as the Andorran or Liechtenstein champions. Total Network Solutions (of Llansaintfraid i believe) who are the welsh champions have offered them a play-off for their place in the competition but the Welsh FA are not agreeing with this. Watch this space for more updates on Liverpool the champions not being in the Champions League.