Reds triumph in Barcelona: 40 years on

Bob Paisley's side defeated a formidable opponent, who boasted the legendary Johan Cruyff among their number, in the semi-finals of the 1976 UEFA Cup to secure a one-goal advantage after the first leg at Camp Nou.

Liverpool were showered with compliments for their heroics, while the Catalans were showered with cushions - thrown down from the stands as a mark of disgust from the home supporters.

It was a glorious night in Europe for the men in red in what was a fitting arena for such an occasion.

"I went to Barcelona on holiday with my mates," recalls Ian Callaghan.

"I think I must have been about 18, and we booked a tour of the stadium. I remember going to Barcelona and it was an incredible stadium then - it was huge.

"The thing I remembered about it, they had a hairdressing salon in there so they must have cut players' hair. It's just unbelievable.

"And then to think years later, I would be playing there. When I think about it, it's just incredible."

The match programme from the first-leg clash at Camp Nou

The significance of the match didn't overawe Liverpool, and it took just 13 minutes for the visitors to assert themselves.

In the build-up the game, Barcelona boss Hennes Weisweiller had spoken of the danger posed by the strike partnership of John Toshack and Kevin Keegan - and his pre-match assessment was quickly proven correct.

For the only goal of the game, the duo displayed their near-telepathic relationship as they strung together a fine move.

After a long punt upfield from goalkeeper Ray Clemence, Toshack rose highest and flicked the ball towards Keegan.

The No.7 was under pressure from a defender and had his back to goal, but still managed to thread a neat through ball into the penalty area.

Toshack read the mind of his partner and arrived in the box at the right time to strike the ball into the bottom corner of the net.

Callaghan - who bossed the contest in midfield for the entire 90 minutes - believes the aforementioned duo were one of the best in club's illustrious history.

He enthused: "In the 60s you had Roger Hunt and Ian St John, the 80s you had Kenny [Dalglish] and [Ian] Rush and then you had Luis [Suarez] and [Daniel] Sturridge.

"But these two were a terrific partnership, they understood how each other played and they just played off one another. Of all the great partnerships, they were one of them.

"I remember people thought these two were telepathic. They did this thing for television where they were back-to-back and putting things up and the other had to guess what he has doing. That was because they were so good together."

From that moment on, Liverpool were in control of the contest and the tie.

They even managed to keep one of the best players in the world quiet without devoting any sort of special attention towards him.

"[Cruyff] was one of the best players that has ever played the game of football," Callaghan added.

"We were all aware of him but I don't think we set out for somebody to specifically mark him. It was the nearest jersey to him. He was a fantastic player and it was a great privilege to play against him.

"I played in the Ajax game [in 1966] when they beat us 5-1. That was the first time Johan Cruyff came to the fore, so then to play him all these years later against Barcelona was fantastic."

Clemence was rarely threatened in goal and Liverpool held on to their important advantage, much to the displeasure of the majority within Camp Nou.

The referee had to briefly hold up proceedings five minutes before the match’s conclusion as thousands of seat cushions were hurled from the stands and onto the pitch.

However, at the end of the game, the 75,000 spectators cut short their boos to give a heart-warming and deserved reception to honour Liverpool's performance.

The Reds completed the job in the second leg, with a 1-1 draw seeing them advance to a two-legged final against Club Brugge.

Johan Cruyff in action in the return fixture at Anfield

Liverpool went on to lift the UEFA Cup and would follow that up with back-to-back European Cup wins in the two years that followed.

Callaghan, who holds the record for the most appearances for the Reds, believes the success in 1976 paved the way for further Euro glory down the line.

He said: "To win a trophy is always special. To beat Barcelona and the run to the final was absolutely amazing really.

"Playing in Europe was different and we were one of the best British sides to play in Europe at that time because we had a lot of experience."