Article by Matt Volpi – @matt_volpi

“What a story!” Jurgen Klopp exclaimed, beaming at the camera before launching into a hilarious yet beautifully predictable impression of Rocky Balboa, German and American accents melding as he screamed into the microphone.

He was, of course, referring to the unlikely hero of the night, Adrian San Miguel.

Like the fictional boxer the manager was emulating, Liverpool had been on the ropes. For large portions of the Super Cup final they toiled in the Turkish heat. 90 minutes passed with numerous chances for both sides before eventually the game slid into extra time, where the reds were able to grab a short lived lead before being pegged back by a Jorginho penalty.

The exertions of 120 minutes would count for nothing. Once again, Liverpool would rely on a shootout to win in Istanbul.

In 2005, it was Jerzy Dudek who made himself an unlikely hero. On the night, the reds looked to their goalkeeper again. Adrian, not first choice but instead making his first start for the club, responded with the deciding save to secure the title and another outstanding trophy lift from Jordan Henderson.

The Spaniard, who joined Liverpool just 9 days prior, had last started a competitive football match 201 days ago for West Ham United. The opposition were AFC Wimbledon, the competition was the FA Cup and the result was a chastening 4-2 defeat. It would be 1 of only 5 games the Spaniard featured in last season, his status within the squad diminished with the arrival of new number 1 Lukasz Fabianski.

The stakes on that day may have seemed high to Adrian, who desperately wanted to make an impression on manager Mauricio Pellegrini as he attempted to win back a starting place for the team he had joined in 2013. In the moment, things looked bleak. However, just over 6 months later his career would take an unexpected turn towards the highest profile club and match of his life.

Those who have followed the game of football for long enough know that second chances are rare. Once Adrian had fallen out of favour with the Hammers, the common trajectory would be a move back to Spain, or perhaps to a club lower down the divisions in England, where he could finish his career in relative comfort.

It would have surprised nobody, had that been the path Adrian took. At the age of 32, his time at West Ham represented what many would have thought to be the pinnacle of his career. After a couple of loan spells in the lower tiers of Spanish football, Adrian managed one full season with Real Betis before catching the eye of then West Ham manager Sam Allardyce.

Adrian had been a part of the Betis set up for most of his footballing life, joining the youth team in 1998, but he needed a slice of luck to find himself in between the posts in a La Liga match. A sending off for starting keeper Casto proved to be the catalyst, allowing him to make his debut in a 4-0 defeat. While the score wasn’t pretty for the 10-man Betis side, Adrian could walk away happy, having been awarded the man of the match.

His West Ham debut didn’t quite follow the same pattern. Having signed an initial three-year deal, the keeper found himself lining up against Cheltenham Town in the league cup, a far cry from the Andalusian settings of his youth. In the second half, Adrian conceded a penalty, bringing down a striker who tried to around him.

It seems Adrian has a tradition of giving away penalties on his debut, but not to any cost. West Ham would win the game 2-0, with none other than Ravel Morrison among the scorers.

Despite the shaky start, it didn’t take long for him to establish himself as a talented keeper with a fiery character to match, perfect for the Premier League.

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At the time, his willingness to come off his line and play the ball out represented something of a novelty, and his shot-stopping ability proved a massive asset to the Hammers, quickly winning over the hearts of the fans.

Although, had it been up to the Spaniard, he may never have played in goal at all.

“When I was 10 I played as a striker, because I was tall and I enjoyed scoring goals. But then my team didn’t have a goalkeeper, so I decided to go in goal, but only as a stop-gap until we managed to get a new keeper. But I did quite well, the coach was impressed and the following year I was signed by Betis. To this day I’ve remained a keeper and now I’m no longer thinking of changing positions – I think I’ll stick to being a goalkeeper!” He told FourFourTwo.

Usually when a stop-gap turns into a career, something has gone wrong. I’m picturing a few colleagues of the past, 10 years deep into a telesales job, telling me how they initially only planned to do this for 6 months. Thankfully, it’s proved to be a position worth sticking with for Adrian.

He may have doubted whether the rewards had quite matched his expectations as a young man growing up in the Betis Academy. Although he was called up to the Spain squad in 2016, he’s yet to earn his first International cap. With his years advancing and the quality talent being produced elsewhere, that looked likely to be a milestone missed.

And with his last season at West Ham a frustrating one, Adrian found himself training at a sixth tier club in Spain, maintaining his fitness as he waited on offers from his potential future clubs.

Whilst football tends to follow set patterns, sometimes things just fall into place. Simon Mignolet finalised a move to Club Brugge, leaving Liverpool in rather urgent need of a second goalkeeper. Requiring a reliable shot-stopper who could emulate the style of Alisson, Adrian got the call. Within 24 hours, he had signed for the European Champions.

Yet another twist of fate was to come. An unfortunate injury to Alisson catapulted the new signing into the first team for a Super Cup final, a stage he would never have expected to grace.

And when the opportunity came, Adrian took his moment, saving the deciding penalty and getting his hands on the first major honour of his career. As he gazed lovingly at the trophy, the emotion was there for all to see. Adrian, you did it.

In tradition of Liverpool keepers, a come down wasn’t far away. The story would continue for Adrian beyond his special night, but the next chapter wouldn’t be as dreamlike.

The bizarre circumstances that had catapulted the Spaniard to his highest ebb weren’t quite finished. A sliding fan, running onto the pitch in jubilation, somehow managed to injure the keeper amongst the celebrations that followed the penalty shoot-out. With Allison out for an indefinite period and young Kelleher untested, Klopp had little choice but to risk Adrian at St Mary’s.

Uncertain, injured, or just the calibre of Goalkeeper we had signed? We still didn’t know how good this new keeper was, but the questions beckoned as he passed the ball against Danny Ings, a comical concession to allow the Saints back into the game.

The measure of the man though, has been his reaction. When Allison, now officially the best goalkeeper in the world (UEFA says so, don’t @ me), produced a catastrophic mistake against Leicester City last season, it was brushed off without hesitation by the Brazilian, who went on to have one of the finest seasons between the sticks that Anfield has witnessed in some time.

Thankfully, his deputy possesses the same unflappable nature.

Adrian was in no mood to let the fairy-tale end. Despite his error, Liverpool won the game. They have won every league match since, and deservedly, but things could be looking less than rosy for the reds going into week 7 had it not been for their new keeper.

Not only has Adrian shown admirable heart, but his ability is becoming more evident as his Liverpool career continues. His save against Napoli will probably be forgotten due to the result, but deserves discussion and replay for the rest of the campaign, such was the improbability of the stop made while seemingly hovering in the air.

A massive save from Tammy Abraham may well have made the difference on Sunday, whilst the footwork on display when he chipped the ball over the Chelsea forward was outrageously cool. Like his colleagues, Adrian was chosen for his mental might, and is clearly determined to make the most of this unforeseen opportunity at the high table.

Whatever comes next for the goalkeeper, whose time may be coming to an end with the spectre of Allison looming, he has achieved something that looked incredibly unlikely. Not only has he delivered a European Trophy, he’s established himself in one of the finest teams on the continent.

Missing the best keeper in the world should be much more of a problem, and could have derailed the ultimately unsuccessful title charge had it happened last season, but Adrian has proven himself more than a worthy deputy. The greatest compliment you can pay is that his presence on the team sheet will cause no unease in Liverpool minds.

In fact, he already has a special place in the heart of the Kop, whose adulation bears sharp contrast to those final days at West Ham as he prepared for a summer without a club, a European final the furthest thing from his mind.

What a story indeed.

Article by Matt Volpi – @matt_volpi