The 2004–05 season was the 113th season of competitive football played by Liverpool. Liverpool finished fourth in the previous Premier League season. However, they were unable to improve on this position finishing in fifth place, 37 points behind eventual winners Chelsea with a record of 17 wins, 7 draws and 14 defeats. Liverpool fared better in cup competitions. Although they were eliminated by Burnley in the third round of the FA Cup, they reached the final of the League Cup, which they lost 3–2 to Chelsea. Despite their lack of success domestically, Liverpool were successful in the UEFA Champions League. They won the competition for the fifth time, defeating Italian team Milan in the final.
 
Liverpool acquired eight players in the transfer market, including Djibril Cissé, Xabi Alonso and Luis García. They were supplemented by the arrival of Mauricio Pellegrino, Fernando Morientes and Scott Carson during the January transfer window. A total of four players departed including Markus Babbel, Danny Murphy, Michael Owen and Stéphane Henchoz.
 
Thirty-two different players represented the club in four competitions, and there were 17 different goalscorers. Liverpool's top goalscorer were Milan Baroš, Steven Gerrard and García with 13 goals each. Defender John Arne Riise made the most appearances during the season with 57.
 
2004–05 UEFA Champions League
GK
1
Jerzy Dudek
RB
3
Steve Finnan
CB
23
Jamie Carragher
CB
4
Sami Hyypiä
LB
21
Djimi Traoré
DM
14
Xabi Alonso
RM
10
Luis García
CM
8
Steven Gerrard (c)
LM
6
John Arne Riise
SS
7
Harry Kewell
CF
5
Milan Baroš
Substitutes:
GK
20
Scott Carson
DF
17
Josemi
MF
16
Dietmar Hamann
MF
18
Antonio Núñez
MF
25
Igor Bišćan
FW
9
Djibril Cissé
FW
11
Vladimír Šmicer