Former Liverpool striker Milan Baros played his final game of football last week, aged 44. Baros signed for Liverpool in 2001 and left in August 2005, scoring 27 goals in 108 games for the Reds.
He played a part in the famous 2004/05 Champions League triumph, starting the final before being taken off in the 85th minute with the score level at 3-3, as Liverpool went on to win the match on penalties. Two of Baros’ 13 goals that season came in Europe, and he ended the campaign as Liverpool’s joint top-scorer in all competitions.
Farewell match in Ostrava
The previous summer, he gained worldwide attention for his heroics with Czech Republic at Euro 2004, where he clinched the tournament’s golden boot prize with five goals and helped his nation reach the semi-finals as a 22-year-old.
Last Saturday, the Czech football legend said goodbye to the beautiful game in front of 15,000 adoring fans at the packed City Stadium in Ostrava-Vitkovice. His farewell match in Ostrava, home of his boyhood club Banik, where he enjoyed three separate stints, included a host of his former club and national team colleagues.
Tributes from former team-mates
They included Chelsea legend Petr Cech, former Arsenal midfielder Tomas Rosicky and ex-Reds team-mate Vladimir Smicer. Baros was also joined by his two teenage sons and half-brother out on the pitch, where they reportedly scored a combined seven goals.
He played the first half for Banik and the second for a team of former internationals. Baros had to wait several years after his actual retirement in July 2020, with the farewell game initially being postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Baros said with tears in his eyes: "It's been six years since the end of my career, the boys have grown up and I'm glad I was able to play with them thanks to this. Everything ends eventually, today was the last time. Thank you to everyone who came."
Speaking directly to the fans in attendance before leaving the pitch for the last time, Baros added: "We enjoyed this together, but everything comes to an end eventually. Today was the last time, but I'll keep coming to watch and cheer with you. Banik will always stay in my heart, I'll always support it. A huge thank you to everyone who came and created this wonderful atmosphere."
Legacy beyond Liverpool
His compatriot and fellow Champions League winner with Liverpool, Smicer, said: "He was a great team-mate, always giving a hundred percent on the pitch. He loved the team, loved the dressing room and wanted the group to stick together off the pitch too."
He added that Baros had a hard time at Liverpool at first: "It was a huge jump for him, he needed time to adjust, he didn't know the language, but he managed, started scoring goals, and the high point was winning the Champions League final."
Smicer concluded: "Not everyone in Czechia manages to sell out a whole stadium for their farewell."
Polish goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek, the hero of that Champions League final in Istanbul, also recalled Baros’ key role in Liverpool’s success. Dudek said: "That whole season he was a very important player for Liverpool. And that's why we're here today — for him, a legend of football."
Meanwhile, Cech, who pulled off stunning saves during the game, commented: "A great team-mate and team player. He'd do anything for the team. He loves football, and whenever he steps onto the pitch he always gives everything he's got."
Post-Liverpool, Baros went on to join Aston Villa and later played for Lyon, Portsmouth, Galatasaray, Banik Ostrava again, Antalyaspor, Mlada Boleslav, Slovan Liberec before calling time on his professional career. He is the Czech Republic’s second all-time leading goal-scorer with 41 goals across 93 caps.
