which they had lost the final. Manager Carlo Ancelotti said, "We had six minutes of madness in which we threw away the position we had reached until then". The result compounded Milan's failure to win Serie A a week before the match. Milan's vice-president, Adriano Galliani, played down the loss, asserting: "Even if we come second in the league, and second in the Champions League, this is not a disastrous season for us". Captain Paolo Maldini was less optimistic, stating that the reverse was a "huge disappointment", but he added that Milan would accept the defeat and "go out with their heads high". Much discussion after the final centered on the future of Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard who had been linked with a move to rivals Chelsea. Gerrard stated in the immediate aftermath of the victory, "How can I think of leaving Liverpool after a night like this?" Media reports then quoted Gerrard as saying he wished to leave Liverpool, citing events that had occurred in the month after the Champions League victory as the reason. On 6 July, however, Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry released a statement confirming that Gerrard would remain at the club, and Gerrard signed a new four-year contract on 8 July. He ultimately never played for another club in Europe, as he departed for the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer a decade later. Despite winning the competition, Liverpool's place in next season's Champions League was still in doubt. Prior to the 2005 Champions League final, The Football Association had decided on 5 May that only the top four finishers in the Premier League would qualify and Liverpool ended their domestic season in fifth place behind Everton. UEFA initially maintained that each country could only have four Champions League spots and suggested that the FA could nominate Liverpool instead of Everton. Liverpool faced a three-week wait to discover if they would be allowed to defend their title as all previous winners of the competition had done. UEFA came to a decision on 10 June, confirming that both Everton and Liverpool would be able to compete in the Champions League; however, Liverpool were entered into the first qualifying round, and were given no "country protection"; meaning they could face another English club at any stage of the competition. The UEFA Executive Committee also amended the regulations for future competitions so that the holders would have