Glen Johnson believes that yesterday’s World Cup final between France and Argentina was better than Liverpool’s famous Champions League final in Istanbul back in 2005.
Lionel Messi inspired his nation to their first World Cup success since 1986 after the game finished 3-3 after extra-time and the tie was settled on penalties with the South Americans winning 4-2.
The former Reds defender has also claimed that Kylian Mbappe, who became the first man to score a hat trick in a World Cup final since Geoff Hurst in 1966, will be as successful as his PSG teammate in ten years time.
“The World Cup final was certainly the best final I’ve seen,” he told Midnite (via the Liverpool Echo). “Forget it being a final, it was one of the most entertaining games I’ve seen.
“It had everything other than a red card, great attacking, defending, goals and saves. For me, it’s the best final I’ve ever seen. It’s better than Liverpool’s Istanbul comeback in 2005 because it’s a World Cup final, it’s the biggest game in football.
“Anyone outside of Liverpool does not appreciate the Istanbul game even though it’s up there as one of the best finals.”
It’s hard to see how our success at the Ataturk Stadium can ever be beaten.
We were 3-0 down at half-time against a team full of world-class players such as Kaka, Andrea Pirlo, Clarence Seedorf and Hernan Crespo but we managed to turn things around within six second-half minutes.
Of course, yesterday’s game was one of the all-time classics, but we’re not sure it can be compared to our 2005 Champions League success.
Johnson also commented on the performance of Mbappe – the 23-year-old did all he could to win his second World Cup title but it was Messi that reigned supreme.
He said: “Kylian Mbappe was the substory of the final. He did not offer anything in the first 60 minutes but then he sparked himself alive and scored a hattrick.
“It’s heartbreaking to put in his performance and not win the World Cup. I’d be over the moon if Liverpool can sign Mbappe because he’ll be getting the same accolades as Lionel Messi has in 10 years time.”