Luis Garcia

Luis Garcia was one of a number of Spanish players signed by Rafa when he took over at Anfield. He had been initially noticed by Rafa when he went on loan to Tenerife in 2000 and admitted “My excellent rapport with Benítez was the chief reason I accepted Liverpool’s offer”. He was awarded the number 10 shirt and quickly grabbed attention with his timely goals, taking the physical nature of the Premier League in his stride.

In form, Luis Garcia scores goals with an instinctive nature, coming forward from the right wing or attacking midfield and showing remarkable heading ability. He was a key factor in Liverpool’s inexorable march to the 2005 Champions League title, with a stunning long range effort against Juventus at Anfield, which set up that victory. In the semi-final, he finished off Baros’s good work by poking the ball over the line to sink the Chelsea campaign. Being in the right place, at the right time had a lot to do with Garcia finishing as joint club top scorer with 13 goals.