European competitions are always tough to win, even for a club that has enjoyed as much continental success as Liverpool. This is not to say that every European match poses a challenge though. There have been times when Liverpool have found themselves involved in a complete mismatch and subsequently given the opposite side a good hiding.
As a result, you can find a long list of European matches that Liverpool have won by a margin of four goals or more. As for their biggest victories ever though, you may be surprised to see just how comfortably they have won some matches on a European stage.
Liverpool 6-0 Real Sociedad (1975)
A 3-1 loss in the first leg of this UEFA Cup second round clash meant Real Sociedad needed a special performance at Anfield to remain in the competition. Instead, the Spaniards fell apart as the Reds tore them to pieces. After going 2-0 down by half-time, Sociedad then shipped in four goals in the space of just seven minutes midway through the second half, making it truly an evening to forget.
Liverpool 6-0 Hamburg (1977)
This edition of the European Super Cup was a two-legged affair contested by the holders of the European Cup Winners Cup (Hamburg) and the European Cup (Liverpool). After a 1-1 draw in the opening leg, Liverpool manager Bob Paisley said, “I do not rate Hamburg”, while Kevin Keegan, who had recently transferred from Liverpool to Hamburg, called his side’s performance “pathetic”.
If Hamburg were pathetic in the first leg, then it becomes hard to describe their performance in the second. The German outfight barely put up a fight as they fell to a 6-0 defeat. For a long time, this 7-1 aggregate loss was the heaviest in the Super Cup history but it was eventually topped in 1996 when Juventus beat PSG 9-2.
Rangers 1-7 Liverpool (2022)
Some Liverpool fans may not even be aware of some of the matches on this list but very few will be unfamiliar with the tonking they gave Rangers. In the 2022/23 edition of the Champions League, the Reds travelled to Glasgow looking for three points that would keep the pressure on group leaders Napoli.
Things did not begin according to plan as Scott Arfield gave Rangers the lead but Liverpool fired back in some style. A six-minute hat-trick from Mohamed Salah combined with goals from Roberto Firmino, Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott subjected the Scottish side to an embarrassing loss.
Maribor 0-7 Liverpool (2017)
The only other away match to feature on this list of Liverpool’s biggest wins came during a 2017/18 Champions League group stage clash. Three goals in the opening 20 minutes virtually put an end to the contest but the Reds kept plugging away looking for more goals. They ended the clash having recorded 26 shots, 14 of which were on target.
The Slovenian side did at least recover a little pride when facing the Reds two weeks later at Anfield. Here they only fell to a 3-0 loss, much better than what fellow Group E side Spartak Moscow managed in Merseyside.
Liverpool 7-0 Spartak Moscow (2017)
Just weeks after they thrashed Maribor, Liverpool recorded another emphatic win over one of the big Russian clubs, Spartak Moscow. Not content with just one 7-0 group stage win, the Reds recorded another thanks to goals from their deadly attacking quartet of Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah.
Having shown such attacking prowess in the group stages, Liverpool then scored another 17 goals during the first three two-legged knockout rounds before losing to Real Madrid in the final.
Liverpool 7-0 Oulun Palloseura (1981)
Finnish outfit Oulun Palloseura are the only team to feature twice on this list, the first coming courtesy of this 7-0 defeat at Anfield. It was hardly an embarrassing result though result given the disparity in squad quality and resources. It also marked a substantial improvement on the previous year’s trip to Anfield, which we will get to a little later on.
The Finns also managed to avoid having the outright worst aggregate defeat of the 1981/82 European Cup first round. Thanks to a narrow 1-0 loss in the home leg, their eight-goal aggregate defeat was matched by Hibernians who lost 10-2 to Red Star Belgrade.
Liverpool 8-0 TSV Munich (1967)
Having seen off Malmo FF in the first round of the Inter Cities Fairs Cup, the Reds faced TSV Munich in the next round. It may have been another two-legged affair but a crushing 8-0 win in the first meant the return leg in Munich was a mere formality. Roger Hunt and Ian Callaghan both bagged themselves a brace in what remains TSV Munich’s heaviest-ever defeat in all competitions.
Liverpool 8-0 Besiktas (2007)
After losing to Besiktas 2-1 just two weeks earlier, Liverpool needed a win against the Turkish outfit to keep their Champions League hopes alive. Not only did they secure the three points but they destroyed their shell-shocked opponents who completely lost their nerve at Anfield. It could have been more on another day too, such was the dominance of Liverpool who recorded 19 shots on target.
Riding high on confidence after this win, Liverpool then won their remaining group stage games 4-1 (Porto) and 4-0 (Marseille) to secure passage to the knockout rounds.
Liverpool 10-1 Oulun Palloseura (1980)
This match is a particularly interesting addition to the list given that the two teams fought out a 1-1 draw in the first leg of this European Cup first-round tie. With all to play for in the return leg, the Finnish outfit might have been fancying their chances of securing an upset at Anfield.
The second leg clash did not end up resembling the first in the slightest though with the Reds running riot thanks to hattricks from Graeme Souness and Terry McDermott. This gave Liverpool a handsome 11-2 aggregate win in what later proved to be a winning European Cup season. It may have been little consolation for the Finns but they at least managed the feat of scoring home and away against Liverpool!
Liverpool 10-0 Dundalk (1969)
A young Gerard Houllier, who would become Liverpool manager three decades later, was in attendance to see this hammering of Irish side Dundalk. It took Alec Lindsay less than a minute to score the opening goal and by half-time, the Reds had a resounding 5-0 lead. Liverpool were not even at full strength yet they found another five goals in the second half. This battering still remains Dundalk’s heaviest-ever defeat, and by a three-goal margin.
Liverpool 11-0 Stromsgodset (1974)
Finally, we come to Liverpool’s biggest European win, which is also their biggest ever in all competitions. Facing Norwegian minnows Stromsgodset in the first round of the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, there seemed no possibility of an upset but few were predicting a scoreline quite this big. The Nordic amateurs found themselves utterly outclassed as nine of Liverpool’s starting eleven got onto the scoresheet. Midfielder Brian Hall was the only starting outfield player not to find the back of the net!