Tottenham join Liverpool, Man United and Barcelona among the greatest Champions League comebacks

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8 May 2019

Facing a three-goal deficit at half-time, Tottenham pulled off another Champions League comeback for the ages.

Lucas Moura completed a hat trick in the sixth minute of injury time as Tottenham rallied to beat Ajax 3-2 on Wednesday and reach their first Champions League final, ending a remarkable run by the young Dutch team that had knocked off some of Europe's biggest teams along the way.

A day after Liverpool stunningly erased a 3-0 deficit from the first leg by beating Barcelona 4-0 at Anfield, Lucas nearly single-handedly helped Tottenham pull off a similar feat in Amsterdam.

Ajax seemed to have the two-legged semifinal wrapped up by half-time after teenage captain Matthijs de Ligt and Hakim Ziyech netted to put it 2-0 up at the break - and 3-0 on aggregate.

But Moura scored twice in a four-minute span to put the visitors one goal from going through 3-3 on aggregate thanks to the away goals rule.

After Jan Vertonghen's header hit the crossbar in the 87th minute, that goal finally arrived when Lucas struck again deep into injury time. Dele Alli laid the ball off the Brazilian as he streaked into the area and his low shot crept inside the right post to complete another improbable victory.

So, where does that comeback rank for you among the greatest in Champions League history? Have your say in our poll below, and read on for a run-through of our pick of those games...

1999: Manchester United 2-1 Bayern Munich

However his spell in charge works out, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Manchester United will always have this night in Barcelona. Chasing an historic treble, Sir Alex Ferguson's side looked to have run out of steam in the Champions League final as they trailed to Mario Basler's sixth-minute goal. Ferguson threw on Solskjaer and Teddy Sheringham as time ran down, and it paid off in some style. Sheringham levelled in the first minute of stoppage time before Solskjaer prodded in a winner two minutes later.

2004: Deportivo La Coruna 4-0 AC Milan (Deportivo win 5-4 on aggregate)

Milan, the defending champions and tournament favourites, thrashed Deportivo 4-1 in the first leg of their quarter-final tie and seemed set for a cruise into the last four. But Deportivo pulled off a performance for the ages in the second leg. Walter Pandiani opened the scoring in the fifth minute, Juan Carlos Valeron got a second in the 34th minute and Albert Luque made it 3-0 a minute before the break. Milan seemed certain to respond but mustered nothing, and Depor's club captain Fran sealed the comeback in the 76th minute.

2005: Liverpool 3-3 AC Milan (Liverpool win on penalties)

The semi-final victory over Barca ranks only as Liverpool's second best ever Champions League comeback, because the first entry on the list - the Miracle of Istanbul - came with the trophy. Rafael Benitez's men were dead and buried at half-time as they trailed 3-0 to AC Milan, a side filled with some of the greatest names in European football. Paulo Maldini had opened the scoring in the first minute before Hernan Crespo's brace. But everything changed in the space of six mad minutes in the second half as Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Smicer and Xabi Alonso scored before the hour mark to level the game. Liverpool took it to extra time and penalties, when Jerzy Dudek pulled out the dance moves and Andriy Shevchenko missed the decisive spot-kick.

2017: Barcelona 6-1 PSG (Barcelona win 6-5 on aggregate)

Of course, they have seen the other side too. The Catalans suffered a shock 4-0 defeat to PSG in the French capital in the first leg of their round of 16 tie - a result which was assumed to be PSG's coming-of-age moment in a competition they had been built to win.

Without an away goal, Barca were given little chance of turning things around. They began well, with Luis Suarez scoring after just three minutes, but it took until five minutes before the break for a second to follow through Layvin Kurzawa's own goal. Lionel Messi's penalty made it 3-0 in the 50th minute but when Edinson Cavani netted for PSG just after the hour the odds seemed against Barca. Instead, a most remarkable finish followed. Neymar scored in the 88th and 91st minutes, the second from the penalty spot, before Sergi Roberto scored in the fifth minute of time added on to spark wild scenes. PSG's response was to splurge £200million on Neymar in the summer.

2018: AS Roma 3-0 Barcelona (Roma win on away goals after a 4-4 draw)

Barcelona have been here before, and only a year ago. After a 4-1 win in the Nou Camp, they went to Roma looking certain of a place in the semi-finals.

But it all went wrong for the Catalans inside the Stadio Olimpico. Edin Dzeko struck early to give Roma confidence and Daniele De Rossi added a second from the penalty spot just before the hour to set up a tense finish. Barcelona could not find the goal they needed and Kostas Manolas' 82nd-minute header sent them out of the competition.

2019: Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona (Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate)

Istanbul will always be the benchmark when it comes to Liverpool comebacks in Europe but the 4-0 dismantling of Barcelona at Anfield will run it close as Jurgen Klopp's side reached successive Champions League finals.

Trailing by three goals from the first leg no-one gave the Reds much hope but two goals apiece from Divock Origi and game-changing half-time substitute Georginio Wijnaldum saw them progress 4-3 on aggregate.

In a truly remarkable - and intense - game not only did Liverpool erase that disadvantage inside 56 minutes, they went on to score a winner and, remarkably, kept Lionel Messi quiet.

For only the fourth time in the competition's history a team was eliminated from a knockout tie having won the first leg by three or more goals, the last occasion being Barca against Roma in last season's quarter-final.

2019: Ajax 2-3 Tottenham (Spurs win on away goals after a 3-3 draw)

Tottenham replicated Liverpool's Champions League miracle as Lucas Moura's dramatic second-half hat-trick set up a stunning 3-2 win over Ajax which sets up an all-English final.

Following a 1-0 first-leg loss in London, Spurs were dead and buried at half-time in the second leg at the Johan Cryuff ArenA as they trailed the Amsterdam 2-0 on the night and 3-0 on aggregate after goals from Matthijs De Ligt and Hakim Ziyech.

However, a miraculous comeback, spearheaded by Moura, was completed deep into added time when the Brazilian slotted home a loose ball to spark amazing scenes in Amsterdam.

It continues the remarkable progress for Spurs under boss Mauricio Pochettino, who has led the club further in Europe than any other.

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