High up in the stands, towards the end of the game, a group of Liverpool fans made a point of unfurling a red banner across green tarpaulin to make it stand out.
‘Campione Liverpool,’ it declared, simply, and once again you came away from a night in Europe thinking that declaration will ring true in St Petersburg next May. Beating AC Milan away from home might not have the lustre of old but that should not detract from the achievement.
Liverpool, thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi, came from behind to ensure they topped Group B – the one that had been labelled the ‘Group of Death’ – with a 100 per cent record that will have made their rivals for this trophy sit up and take notice.