Inter and Bayern Munich have plenty to live up to on Saturday night. Check out JOE’s favourite European Cup/Champions League finals of the past.
By Jonny Stapleton
Strangely, great European finals are the exception rather than the rule. Maybe it’s the high stakes and high tension, maybe it’s just the nature of the game – most matches, let’s face it, are quite dull, only illuminated by the odd night of beauty which transcends football, transcends sport even, and becomes something closer to art.
For every European Cup/Champions League final cracker, there have been plenty of others – Steaua-Barcelona (1986), a PSV-Benfica (1989) and Milan-Juventus (2003) are three that immediately spring to mind – which left us rooting through the toolshed in search of something sharp to bolt through our own skulls.
But there have been a number of occasions when the best players turned in their best performances on the biggest stage. So let us present, JOE’s pick of the best European Cup/Champions League deciders.
Benfica 5-3 Real Madrid (1962)
Not only does the 1962 decider boast eight goals, an amazing comeback and a place in Joe Sports Tube’s all time top six, it can also lay claim to showcasing two of the greatest players ever to play the game.
The sensational Ferenc Puskas gave Madrid a two goal cushion with a first-half hat-trick – in the space of 20-odd minutes – but the equally brilliant Eusebio inspired a Benfica comeback, as the Portuguese champions hit three without reply after the break.
Celtic 2-1 Internazionale (1967)
Football, as well as the Lisbon Lions, was the winner in this amazing final. A Celtic side compiled purely of players born in the Glasgow area came back from a goal down to beat the cynical Italians. In typical Italian fashion Inter shut up shop after going ahead but Celtic, who managed over 40 shots in the decider, eventually won out.
Manchester United 4-1 Benfica, after extra-time (1968)
The crowning moment for Manchester United, coming ten years after the Busby Babes’ dream perished on a runway in Munich. For manager Matt Busby and players Bobby Charlton, Nobby Stiles and Bill Foulkes, all of whom survived the air disaster, this night at Wembley was the most emotional of occasions. Bobby Charlton opened the scoring with a trademark cracker but Graça’s equaliser sent the game to extra-time. There, United found their fluency in style, hitting three goals in the space of six minutes to secure the club’s first European Cup triumph.
AC Milan 4-0 Barcelona (1994)
Far from the tit-for-tat nail-biting tense affairs that usually make history but AC Milan’s trashing of Barcelona is historic none the less. Without Van Basten, Baresi, Costacurta, Papin amongst others Milan went into the game as underdogs. They came out of it, however, regarded as one of the greatest European teams of all time thanks to a victory born out of pure quality. Look out for one of the greatest players of the modern era, Dejan Savićević, registering one of the greatest goals a final has seen. Un gol incredibile, indeed.
Manchester United 2-1 Bayern Munich (1999)
In all truth this wasn’t the best advertisement for the beautiful game but this final possessed probably the greatest climax to any ever seen. United hit two late late goals to literally snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Liverpool 3-3 AC Milan, Liverpool win on penalties (2005)
Easily the most exciting and dramatic Champions League Final ever. Liverpool looked doomed after falling three goals behind before half-time, prompting Sky Sports commentator Andy Gray to announce, “That is game, well and truly, over.†But the Reds produced the greatest comeback since Armstrong and Aldrin to win this epic and lift their fifth European crown.
