On This day: Liverpool signed Van Dijk; Milan Knocked Inter out of Coppa Italia

Hi all, welcome to All Football's On This Day! Let's find out what happened today (December 27th) in football history. If you have more stories and news that happened on this day in history, please post them in the comment area and share them with AFers!

27 December 2017 - Liverpool signed Virgil van Dijk

On 27 December 2017, Liverpool signed centre-back Virgil van Dijk from Southampton.

It is no secret he faced a big task to take the Reds from a team that were leaking goals but scoring freely into the outfit they are today which could challenge any side in the world.

That side, of which the imperious Dutchman has had a massive impact on, sit unbeaten at the top of the Premier League clear of their nearest rivals Manchester City by four points. A Merry Christmas indeed.

Van Dijk arrived at Anfield on January 1, 2018, after the news broke the week before that he'd be joining up with Jurgen Klopp and since then has conceded just 17 goals during his time for the club.

On This Day in 2017 - Milan Knocked Inter out of Coppa Italia

Cutrone scored the only goal in extra-time as AC Milan knocked city rivals Inter out of the Coppa Italia.

The 19-year-old struck with a crisp finish after a precise through ball from former Liverpool man Suso.

Inter thought they had scored when goalkeeper Antonio Donnarumma turned Ivan Perisic's effort into his own goal but it was overturned by the video assistant referee for offside.

Gennaro Gattuso's side will now face Lazio in the semi-finals.

Mauro Icardi had scored a hat-trick as Inter won the first derby of the season 3-2 but on Wednesday night Milan bounced back from consecutive defeats.

Milan's third-choice goalkeeper Donnarumma was making his debut after older brother and first-choice Gianluigi was ruled out through injury and Marco Storari pulled up in the warm-up.

Donnarumma kept his side in the contest with crucial stops, keeping out Perisic and Antonio Candreva late on in normal time, before Cutrone netted the winner.

On This Day in 2009 - Stokes' Record Strike

On 27 December 2009, Hibernian's Anthony Stokes scored the SPL's fastest goal, but it did not help them much.

The well-traveled striker, who had spent time at five different clubs over the previous years, was in his first season with Hibs after joining them from Sunderland that August. By mid-December, he had helped the club to a 12-game unbeaten streak that saw them take the table's third spot.

They were hoping to extend the run to 13 when they hosted first-place Rangers at Easter Road. And Stokes gave those hopes a boost when he found the back of the net after just 12.4 seconds, setting an SPL record.

But Rangers took command of the game and were leading 1-2 at the break with goals from Kenny Miller (21') and Kris Boyd (37'). They continued to dominate in the second half, with Nacho Novo extending the visitors' lead to 1-3 in the 53rd minute before Miller's second goal of the day (66') completed the rout at 1-4.

Stokes went on to have a fantastic year, scoring 21 goals in 37 league appearances. That attracted the attention of Celtic, who signed him from Hibs in August 2010.

On This Day in 1966 - The Death Of Guillermo Stábile

On 27 December 1966, Argentina star player and manager Guillermo Stábile died at the age of 61.

A center forward, he joined Huracán as a youth player in 1920, then played there professionally from 1924 to 1930. In that time, he scored 102 goals in 119 appearances, winning the Primera División title in 1925 and 1928. 

In the summer of 1930, he participated in the inaugural World Cup, getting his first cap against Mexico in Argentina's second match of the tournament. He scored a hat-trick en route to a 6-3 victory, followed by a brace in the next game against Chile as Argentina topped their group. He scored two more against the United States in the semifinals, then netted in the final against Uruguay. Although Argentina lost that match 4-2, Stábile's eight goals made him the tournament's top scorer.

His performance attracted the attention of Genoa, where he played from 1930-34 before moving to Napoli for the 1934-35 season. he returned to Genoa briefly in 1935, then closed out his playing career with Red Star Paris, serving as player-manager from 1937 to 1939 when he left to manage Argentina.

As manager, he guided the national team to six South American Championships between 1941 and 1957 and the Panamerican Championship in 1960. While in charge there, he also took the reins of several different clubs, including San Lorenzo (1939-40), Estudiantes de la Plata (1940-41), Hurancán (1940-49), and finally Racing Club (1949-60), whom he led to three league titles.

In 1960, he stepped down to become the director of Argentina's national school of football, holding that post until his death in 1966.