Leeds 4-3 Liverpool: Mark Viduka’s four goals sink the treble chasers (2000)
Leeds 4-3 Liverpool is shorthand for one of the Premier League’s great one-man demolitions. At Elland Road on Saturday 4 November 2000, Mark Viduka scored all four Leeds United goals, at 24, 47, 73 and 75 minutes, and beat a Liverpool side that would go on to win a cup treble that season. It is often remembered as a Leeds rout, but Leeds trailed 0-2 and then 2-3, so Viduka’s four completed a comeback, not a procession, before 40,055 fans.
Key Facts
- Leeds United beat Liverpool 4-3 in the Premier League at Elland Road on Saturday 4 November 2000, in front of 40,055.
- Viduka’s four goals came at 24, 47, 73 and 75 minutes.
- Liverpool replied through Sami Hyypia (2 minutes), Christian Ziege (17) and Vladimir Smicer (61); the half-time score was Leeds 1-2 Liverpool.
- David Elleray refereed. Liverpool went into the match 4th and Leeds 7th in the table.
- Viduka was a summer 2000 signing from Celtic, a £6m fee.
- Ziege’s second Liverpool goal was his first for the club.
- The Liverpool side beaten here went on to win the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup that season.
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Two Goals Behind Before Leeds Had Settled
How the Leeds 4-3 Liverpool Viduka Comeback Unfolded
Liverpool arrived at Elland Road chasing a sixth straight win, and for the opening quarter they played like a side that expected one. Patrik Berger’s free kick found an unmarked Sami Hyypia to head past Paul Robinson inside two minutes. On 17 minutes a second set piece did the damage: Gary McAllister swung in a free kick, Leeds failed to track the run, and Christian Ziege headed in for 0-2. It was Ziege’s first goal since joining Liverpool. Leeds were already patching up their defence, Jonathan Woodgate off for Danny Hay after about a quarter of an hour, an injury-hit home team that could not even name a full bench of substitutes.
Then the afternoon turned. On 24 minutes Ziege dawdled over a clearance, Alan Smith charged it down, and Viduka lifted a finish over Sander Westerveld for 1-2. It was a delicate chip, Viduka wheeling away with his hands raised before the ball had settled in the side netting. Liverpool still led at the interval, 1-2, and had passed up enough chances to be out of sight, Smicer, Didi Hamann and Emile Heskey among those who missed.
Viduka needed less than a minute of the second half to level. Gary Kelly crossed from the right, and the Australian flashed a header into the top corner for 2-2. Liverpool went back in front on 61 minutes, Berger releasing Vladimir Smicer to finish from close range for 2-3, and at that stage the points still looked theirs. They were not. On 73 minutes Viduka collected Olivier Dacourt’s pass, turned Berger inside the box and scored to complete his hat-trick, 3-3. Two minutes later he had his fourth, chipping Westerveld again with Liverpool appealing in vain for offside, and Elland Road was left with a 4-3 win it could scarcely credit. Berger was carried off injured as the match ran away from his team.
| Minute | Scorer | Team | Score (Leeds first) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Sami Hyypia | Liverpool | 0-1 |
| 17 | Christian Ziege | Liverpool | 0-2 |
| 24 | Mark Viduka | Leeds United | 1-2 |
| 47 | Mark Viduka | Leeds United | 2-2 |
| 61 | Vladimir Smicer | Liverpool | 2-3 |
| 73 | Mark Viduka | Leeds United | 3-3 |
| 75 | Mark Viduka | Leeds United | 4-3 |
The Striker Leeds Had Signed That Summer
A Bargain From Celtic, and a Flat Verdict
Viduka had arrived from Celtic a few months earlier, a bargain at £6m. He had already opened his Leeds account before this, but four in one league match was a different order of afternoon. His own reaction was oddly muted. Speaking to reporters afterwards, Viduka said he had “actually played better”, and that days when every chance went in were rare. David O’Leary, who had signed him, was happier, saying he had always loved beating Liverpool as a player and enjoyed it just as much as a manager.
The Team Viduka Beat Won a Treble
The scoreline flattered nobody in Liverpool’s dressing room, and Gerard Houllier said as much, accepting his players had only themselves to blame after collapsing physically late on. What the result did not do was derail their season. The side beaten almost single-handed at Elland Road in November went on to win three knockout competitions. The League Cup and the FA Cup were both secured before a 5-4 UEFA Cup final win over Alaves in Dortmund on 16 May 2001 completed the set. That is the measure of Viduka’s afternoon: the team he took apart on his own was, six months later, a cup treble winner.
READ MORE: More matches that turned on a single afternoon, in our On This Day archive →
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Leeds 4-3 Liverpool
What was the final score in Leeds United v Liverpool on 4 November 2000?
Leeds United beat Liverpool 4-3 in the Premier League at Elland Road on 4 November 2000. Mark Viduka scored all four Leeds goals; Sami Hyypia, Christian Ziege and Vladimir Smicer replied for Liverpool. Liverpool led 1-2 at half time before Viduka’s second-half hat-trick turned the match. The attendance was 40,055.
Who scored the goals in the Leeds 4-3 Liverpool Viduka match?
All four Leeds United goals were Viduka’s, struck at 24, 47, 73 and 75 minutes. Liverpool’s goals came from Sami Hyypia in the second minute, Christian Ziege on 17 minutes and Vladimir Smicer on 61. The running order left Leeds trailing 0-2, then 1-2 at the break, before Viduka’s three second-half goals.
Did Mark Viduka really score all four Leeds goals against Liverpool in 2000?
Yes, Viduka scored every one of Leeds United’s four goals in the 4-3 win over Liverpool. He was the only Leeds player on the scoresheet that day. His four came from a chip, a header, a turn and finish, and a final dink over the goalkeeper.
What was the half-time score in Leeds 4-3 Liverpool at Elland Road?
Leeds United trailed 1-2 at half time, with Liverpool ahead through Hyypia and Ziege and Viduka having pulled one back on 24 minutes. Liverpool had led 0-2 inside 17 minutes before Viduka’s first goal. The comeback that made it 4-3 came entirely after the interval.
Where was the Leeds v Liverpool 4-3 match played and how big was the crowd?
The match was played at Elland Road, Leeds United’s home ground, on Saturday 4 November 2000. The attendance was 40,055. That crowd saw Mark Viduka score all four in a 4-3 Leeds win.
Who refereed Leeds United 4-3 Liverpool on 4 November 2000?
David Elleray was the referee for Leeds United 4-3 Liverpool at Elland Road. The match was a physical one, with Lee Bowyer booked and fortunate to stay on after a foul on Emile Heskey, and Christian Ziege cautioned before half time. It finished with seven goals and no sendings off.
How did Liverpool take a two-goal lead so early at Elland Road?
Liverpool were two goals up inside 17 minutes through two set pieces. Patrik Berger’s free kick found Sami Hyypia unmarked to head past Paul Robinson after two minutes. A Gary McAllister free kick then let Christian Ziege head in a second. Leeds, already reshuffling after Jonathan Woodgate went off injured, were struggling to defend crosses.
How much did Leeds United pay for Mark Viduka?
Viduka joined Leeds United from Celtic in the summer of 2000 for £6m, a fee that looked a bargain. He went on to top Leeds United’s scoring charts that season. The four goals against Liverpool were an early sign of what the fee had bought.
Did losing at Leeds hurt Liverpool’s 2000-01 season?
No, the defeat at Elland Road did not stop Liverpool winning three trophies that season. Gerard Houllier’s side went on to lift the League Cup, the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup. The UEFA Cup final, a 5-4 win over Alaves, came in Dortmund on 16 May 2001. The team Viduka beat almost on his own was a cup treble winner by the following May.
Who managed Leeds and Liverpool in the 4-3 match in 2000?
David O’Leary managed Leeds United and Gerard Houllier managed Liverpool. O’Leary had signed Viduka from Celtic that summer and was plainly delighted with the win. Houllier admitted his side had let it slip.
Was this Mark Viduka’s best match for Leeds United?
It is the match Viduka is most remembered for at Leeds United, though he himself played it down. Speaking to reporters after the 4-3 win, he said he had “actually played better” and that afternoons when every chance went in were rare. Four goals against a side heading for a treble is, by any measure, the peak of his Leeds career, even if he did not see it that way.
What did the managers say after Leeds 4-3 Liverpool?
Gerard Houllier said Liverpool had only themselves to blame and had faded physically at the finish. David O’Leary, on the winning side, said beating Liverpool was something he had always relished, as a player and now as a manager. Viduka, the four-goal scorer, was the more downbeat of the voices, insisting he had played better on other days.
How did Viduka’s four goals against Liverpool actually go in?
Viduka’s four came in four different ways. The first was a chip over Sander Westerveld after Alan Smith charged down a Christian Ziege clearance. The second met a Gary Kelly cross and flew off his forehead into the top corner, early in the second half. The third was a turn and finish past Patrik Berger, and the fourth another chip over Westerveld amid Liverpool offside appeals.
Leeds United 4-3 Liverpool, Remembered for One Man
Most seven-goal matches are remembered for the chaos; this one is remembered for the name on all four Leeds goals. If you want more days when a single player decided a match against the odds, our On This Day archive keeps turning them up, one date at a time.
Sources: BBC Sport, LFChistory.net, PlanetFootball, Liverpool FC.
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