Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2005 12:04 amSee Jocky is getting excited as well 
Liverpool's brilliant defensive display against Juventus in Turin set up an all-Premiership Champions League semi-final against Chelsea - and the once unlikely possibility that my old club could claim the trophy for a fifth time.
You gauge the health of your domestic league not by how many teams you get to European semi-finals but by how many you get to finals.
And the simple fact that the Premiership is guaranteed one representative in European football's elite club competition is a sign that all is well at the top end of the table in England.
If there is a downside in Liverpool's season, it is the maddening inconsistency that means they can lose miserably at Manchester City on a Saturday and play like heroes against Juventus on a Wednesday.
Rafael Benitez will know this must be cured and outstanding European displays must be integrated into Premiership performances next season.
But, in the expertise he has shown tactically in Europe and the brilliant displays of his team, Benitez has not only given Liverpool fans hope, but massive optimism.
Juventus were incredibly inept in Turin but take nothing away from Liverpool - and my growing feeling that they could actually win the Champions League comes from the way they coped with the two distinct faces of European football in this quarter-final.
They rolled over the top of Juventus at Anfield, then defended with great organisation and resilience away from home.
I recall a backs-to-the-wall performance against Bayern Munich in Germany in the European Cup semi-final in 1981, when we were without key defenders and lost Kenny Dalglish after seven minutes.
Liverpool's performance, without Steven Gerrard and a host of others, reminded me of that in Turin.
Chelsea will be favourites for the semi-final, while AC Milan will be favourites to claim the trophy, particularly when looking such a magnificent side in beating a Manchester United team that was flying when they met in the last 16.
There may be a growing feeling inside Anfield that this unlikely adventure could go all the way
Hansen on Liverpool's growing European ambitions
But Liverpool have shown that, on a given day, they can beat anyone - and that's why I am increasingly coming to the conclusion that they could win the whole thing.
No-one, myself including, would have given Liverpool a prayer of doing that, not least when they turned in abject displays against the likes of Birmingham and Southampton earlier this season.
But in Europe they are a team transformed and have shown that they can threaten anyone.
Chelsea may be 30 points ahead of Liverpool in the Premiership and have three wins under their belt against them this season but, in a strange way, Benitez can take heart from those games.
I recall when I played for a dominant Liverpool, Chelsea had an Indian sign over us in the cup competitions and I remember coming a cropper on a couple of occasions.
And over two legs of a European semi-final there can be many twists and turns. Liverpool will be underdogs but they will have faith in themselves after the way they dispatched Bayer Leverkusen and Juventus.
Liverpool played badly at Stamford Bridge and lost but in the narrow 1-0 defeat at Anfield and in the loss in the Carling Cup final, they more than matched Chelsea for long periods.
And this will not be like some cagey European affair.
The semi-final will be a typical Premiership collision, with tackles flying in and no room for the faint-hearted.
Chelsea's confidence will be high and they have some real thoroughbreds in their team, but Liverpool will know they are three games away from the big prize.
Liverpool's fans have had some terrible lows in recent times and just to reach the Champions League semi-final will give them a massive high.
But there may just be a growing feeling inside Anfield, both from players and supporters, that this unlikely adventure could go all the way to the final destination in Istanbul on 25 May.
From BBC.co.uk
Liverpool's brilliant defensive display against Juventus in Turin set up an all-Premiership Champions League semi-final against Chelsea - and the once unlikely possibility that my old club could claim the trophy for a fifth time.
You gauge the health of your domestic league not by how many teams you get to European semi-finals but by how many you get to finals.
And the simple fact that the Premiership is guaranteed one representative in European football's elite club competition is a sign that all is well at the top end of the table in England.
If there is a downside in Liverpool's season, it is the maddening inconsistency that means they can lose miserably at Manchester City on a Saturday and play like heroes against Juventus on a Wednesday.
Rafael Benitez will know this must be cured and outstanding European displays must be integrated into Premiership performances next season.
But, in the expertise he has shown tactically in Europe and the brilliant displays of his team, Benitez has not only given Liverpool fans hope, but massive optimism.
Juventus were incredibly inept in Turin but take nothing away from Liverpool - and my growing feeling that they could actually win the Champions League comes from the way they coped with the two distinct faces of European football in this quarter-final.
They rolled over the top of Juventus at Anfield, then defended with great organisation and resilience away from home.
I recall a backs-to-the-wall performance against Bayern Munich in Germany in the European Cup semi-final in 1981, when we were without key defenders and lost Kenny Dalglish after seven minutes.
Liverpool's performance, without Steven Gerrard and a host of others, reminded me of that in Turin.
Chelsea will be favourites for the semi-final, while AC Milan will be favourites to claim the trophy, particularly when looking such a magnificent side in beating a Manchester United team that was flying when they met in the last 16.
There may be a growing feeling inside Anfield that this unlikely adventure could go all the way
Hansen on Liverpool's growing European ambitions
But Liverpool have shown that, on a given day, they can beat anyone - and that's why I am increasingly coming to the conclusion that they could win the whole thing.
No-one, myself including, would have given Liverpool a prayer of doing that, not least when they turned in abject displays against the likes of Birmingham and Southampton earlier this season.
But in Europe they are a team transformed and have shown that they can threaten anyone.
Chelsea may be 30 points ahead of Liverpool in the Premiership and have three wins under their belt against them this season but, in a strange way, Benitez can take heart from those games.
I recall when I played for a dominant Liverpool, Chelsea had an Indian sign over us in the cup competitions and I remember coming a cropper on a couple of occasions.
And over two legs of a European semi-final there can be many twists and turns. Liverpool will be underdogs but they will have faith in themselves after the way they dispatched Bayer Leverkusen and Juventus.
Liverpool played badly at Stamford Bridge and lost but in the narrow 1-0 defeat at Anfield and in the loss in the Carling Cup final, they more than matched Chelsea for long periods.
And this will not be like some cagey European affair.
The semi-final will be a typical Premiership collision, with tackles flying in and no room for the faint-hearted.
Chelsea's confidence will be high and they have some real thoroughbreds in their team, but Liverpool will know they are three games away from the big prize.
Liverpool's fans have had some terrible lows in recent times and just to reach the Champions League semi-final will give them a massive high.
But there may just be a growing feeling inside Anfield, both from players and supporters, that this unlikely adventure could go all the way to the final destination in Istanbul on 25 May.
From BBC.co.uk
