1. Oleg Salenko vs. Cameroon 1994.
Photo: @eldeportereyweb | Twitter
Opening our list is the man who had perhaps the most amazing, yet shortest international career of all time.
Salenko only made eight appearances with the Russian national team, three of those in the 1994 World Cup. And one of those three matches was the 6-1 victory over Cameroon that carved Salenko’s name into the history of soccer.
Salenko found the bottom of Cameroon’s net nothing less than five times that afternoon. A FIFA World Cup record for goals scored in a single match in the tournament. To add to this amazing story, Salenko ended up sharing the tournament’s Golden Boot with Bulgaria’s Hristo Stoichkov, even though Russia was eliminated in the first round.
As Salenko himself said in an interview to Neil Billingham:
“If you do something spectacular you'll be remembered forever.”
2. Igor Biscan vs. Juventus 2005.
Photo: @ReadLiverpoolFC | Twitter
The Croatian midfielder is an old acquaintance of Liverpool fans. He spent five years with the club between 2000 and 2005. Biscan had a great first season with the Reds, even briefly getting a spot on the first team, but his time in Liverpool was more like a rollercoaster ride.
He spent the next few seasons being shifted around positions. Biscan, who was originally a defensive midfielder, ended up playing everywhere from center back all the way to winger, but never really finding his footing with the team.
In the midst of all of that uncertainty, an injury crisis gave Biscan the chance to play the match he would be remembered by in Liverpool. It was the second leg of the Champions League Quarter-finals, and Liverpool was facing Juventus in Italy.
Liverpool had won the first leg 2-1 at home, and now only needed a draw to knockout the more powerful Juventus.
The Bianconeri had no one less than Alessandro Del Piero and Zlatan Ibrahimovic teaming up on their attack. Despite all the doubts, Biscan anchored a Liverpool defense that managed to frustrate Juventus's attacks during the 90 minutes and hold on to a 0-0 draw and a spot in the semi-finals.
3. Julio Baptista vs. Liverpool 2006.
Photo: @Arsenal | Twitter
Julio Baptista is one of those players where it is hard to tell if he was a mediocre player or just a regular guy. Nevertheless, considering all the physicality and raw talent he had, and how it never really translated to him being the first-class player many hoped him to be, he deserves a spot on this list.
He played on teams like Real Madrid and Roma, but his most memorable game happened while his was on loan at Arsenal.
In the Premier League, the Brazilian was nothing more than a big disappointment, scoring only three goals in 24 appearances. Nevertheless, he came alive during the League Cup, scoring six goals in only three matches. And unfortunately for Liverpool, they were on the wrong end of more than half of those goals.
Baptista put on a show and scored four goals against the Reds in Arsenal’s 6-3 quarter-final victory.
4. Kolo Toure vs. Real Madrid 2014.
Photo: @TheSunFootball | Twitter
From this:
Liverpool fans react to the news Kolo Toure is starting against Real Madrid tonight.... pic.twitter.com/Dz0BMLIW12
— FourFourTweet (@FourFourTweet) November 4, 2014To this:
#Kolo #LFC pic.twitter.com/WCKeprAoxX
— Namenlose (@fenia_LFC) November 4, 2014Imagine being a Liverpool fan who missed the game and read the headlines the next morning. No, it wasn’t April Fool's Day. Kolo Toure had just put up one of the greatest defensive performances in Champions League history.
Everything was against him. People were cursing at him on social media, fans were terrified that he might cost them the match at any given moment, not having played a minute in the Premier League the whole season, and a vicious Cristiano Ronaldo gunning for Raul’s scoring record on the other side.
But in the end, none of it mattered. Toure finished the match with 100 percent of tackles won, six clearances, seven blocks, and one interception.
Photo: @Squawka | Twitter
The Reds might’ve lost the match 1-0, but Toure’s performance will stay in memory as one to be remembered by Liverpool fans.
