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Top 10 Shock European Finalists
Ahead of Fulham’s surprise appearance in the Europa League final tomorrow night against Atletico Madrid, Carlo Garganese runs down 10 of the surprise finalists in European competition from years gone by…
May 11, 2010 10:00:00 AM
By Carlo Garganese
10) Bastia 1977-78 UEFA Cup
By the late 1970s, French football was just starting to develop into something special but Bastia were by no means powerhouses. Despite the presence of Dutch star Johnny Rep and Jean-Francois Larios, who infamously courted Michel Platini’s wife at the 1982 World Cup, the number of French caps combined in the Bastia squad was few. Nevertheless they took the scalps of Newcastle United and Ciccio Graziani’s Torino before being comfortably blown away by PSV’s de Kerkhof brothers in the final, 3-0 on aggregate.
9) Monaco 2003-04 Champions League
Since the mass expansion of the Champions League and the globalisation of football in general over the last 10 years or so, it has become almost impossible for a team outside England, Spain or Italy (Bayern Munich the exception) to win Europe’s premier club competition. 2004 proved to be the year of the underdog as Greece won the Euros, and Porto beat little Monaco in the Champions League final. A Monaco team that had shocked Real Madrid and Chelsea on the way to Gelsenkirchen.
8) Nottingham Forest 1978-79 European Cup
In 1976/77, Nottingham Forest were in the English Second Division. Manager Brian Clough led The Reds to promotion, and then in their first season in the top flight to immediate championship glory. But it didn’t stop there, as in their first year in European competition they won the European Cup by beating Malmo 1-0 in the final thanks to Trevor Francis’ goal. Forest retained the trophy the next year in what has to go down as the most astonishing rise that football has ever seen.
7) Eintracht Frankfurt 1959-60 European Cup
German football remained amateur and sub-regional until the establishment of the Bundesliga in 1963-64, which makes Eintracht Frankfurt’s passage to the final of the 1960 European Cup even more of an achievement. Granted, the Eagles were then thumped 7-3 by Real Madrid at Hampden Park as Ferenc Puskas and Alfredo Di Stefano shared all the goals, but this was a landmark moment for German club football.
6) Alaves 2000-01 UEFA Cup
At the turn of the new millennium, the Spanish league was undoubtedly the strongest championship in Europe with a string of excellent sides such as Real Madrid, Valencia, Deportivo, Barcelona, but not Alaves. The Basque-outfit had only just returned to La Liga after a 42-year absence three seasons earlier but raced all the way to the final by beating Inter and thrashing Kaiserslautern 9-2 on aggregate in the semis. In the final itself they were involved in a nine-goal thriller, losing 5-4 after extra time to Liverpool in arguably the greatest UEFA Cup final of all time.
5) Fulham 2009-10 Europa League
When Fulham were almost relegated two seasons ago, no one could have predicted that in 2009-10 they would be competing in the final of the Europa League. The Cottagers contain a very modest team of hardworkers, but coached by wily old veteran Roy Hodgson have eliminated some huge names on the way to tomorrow’s showpiece including Italian giants Juventus, final hosts Hamburg, and holders Shakhtar Donetsk.
4) Videoton 1984-85 UEFA Cup
The only player most of the public will remember from Videoton’s 1985 UEFA Cup finalists was goalkeeper Peter Disztl, who must surely go down as the scariest looking footballer of all time. The Hungarians were a team of unknowns from a country that was just about to begin a terminal decline, but shocked Manchester United on the way to the final where they were beaten 3-1 on aggregate by Real Madrid despite winning at the Santiago Bernabeu.
3) Schalke 1996-97 UEFA Cup
On the face of it, Schalke’s victorious 1997 UEFA Cup campaign may not seem too much of a shock but rewind 13 years and the Parkstadion-outfit were the talk of Europe. In a competition that had been dominated by Serie A for years, Schalke were complete minnows. Yet they made their way to the final by seeing off the likes of Tenerife and Valencia, and then stunned Inter on penalties to lift the trophy. Inter’s coach? Roy Hodgson.
2) Dundee United 1986-87 UEFA Cup
Dundee Utd produced a string of European shocks during the 1980s, including a run to the semi finals of the 1984 European Cup where they let a 2-0 first leg lead against Roma slip and a famous home-and-away win against the mighty Barcelona on the way to the 1987 UEFA Cup final. Miracle-making coach Jim McLean and star man Paul Sturrock couldn’t lead the Scots to glory, though, as they lost 2-1 on aggregate in the final to IFK Gothenburg.
1) Panathinaikos 1970-71 European Cup
Panathinaikos reaching the final today would be considered a shock, but to do so 40 years ago when Greek football was laughed at by Europe, and the national team had never qualified for a World Cup or Euros, was a biblical miracle. Coached by Hungarian legend Ferenc Puskas, The Greens eliminated Everton and Red Star Belgrade (after an epic semi final comeback) but were comfortably beaten by Johan Cruyff’s Ajax in the final 2-0.
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By the late 1970s, French football was just starting to develop into something special but Bastia were by no means powerhouses. Despite the presence of Dutch star Johnny Rep and Jean-Francois Larios, who infamously courted Michel Platini’s wife at the 1982 World Cup, the number of French caps combined in the Bastia squad was few. Nevertheless they took the scalps of Newcastle United and Ciccio Graziani’s Torino before being comfortably blown away by PSV’s de Kerkhof brothers in the final, 3-0 on aggregate.
9) Monaco 2003-04 Champions League
Since the mass expansion of the Champions League and the globalisation of football in general over the last 10 years or so, it has become almost impossible for a team outside England, Spain or Italy (Bayern Munich the exception) to win Europe’s premier club competition. 2004 proved to be the year of the underdog as Greece won the Euros, and Porto beat little Monaco in the Champions League final. A Monaco team that had shocked Real Madrid and Chelsea on the way to Gelsenkirchen.
8) Nottingham Forest 1978-79 European Cup
In 1976/77, Nottingham Forest were in the English Second Division. Manager Brian Clough led The Reds to promotion, and then in their first season in the top flight to immediate championship glory. But it didn’t stop there, as in their first year in European competition they won the European Cup by beating Malmo 1-0 in the final thanks to Trevor Francis’ goal. Forest retained the trophy the next year in what has to go down as the most astonishing rise that football has ever seen.
7) Eintracht Frankfurt 1959-60 European Cup
German football remained amateur and sub-regional until the establishment of the Bundesliga in 1963-64, which makes Eintracht Frankfurt’s passage to the final of the 1960 European Cup even more of an achievement. Granted, the Eagles were then thumped 7-3 by Real Madrid at Hampden Park as Ferenc Puskas and Alfredo Di Stefano shared all the goals, but this was a landmark moment for German club football.
6) Alaves 2000-01 UEFA Cup
At the turn of the new millennium, the Spanish league was undoubtedly the strongest championship in Europe with a string of excellent sides such as Real Madrid, Valencia, Deportivo, Barcelona, but not Alaves. The Basque-outfit had only just returned to La Liga after a 42-year absence three seasons earlier but raced all the way to the final by beating Inter and thrashing Kaiserslautern 9-2 on aggregate in the semis. In the final itself they were involved in a nine-goal thriller, losing 5-4 after extra time to Liverpool in arguably the greatest UEFA Cup final of all time.
5) Fulham 2009-10 Europa League
When Fulham were almost relegated two seasons ago, no one could have predicted that in 2009-10 they would be competing in the final of the Europa League. The Cottagers contain a very modest team of hardworkers, but coached by wily old veteran Roy Hodgson have eliminated some huge names on the way to tomorrow’s showpiece including Italian giants Juventus, final hosts Hamburg, and holders Shakhtar Donetsk.
4) Videoton 1984-85 UEFA Cup
The only player most of the public will remember from Videoton’s 1985 UEFA Cup finalists was goalkeeper Peter Disztl, who must surely go down as the scariest looking footballer of all time. The Hungarians were a team of unknowns from a country that was just about to begin a terminal decline, but shocked Manchester United on the way to the final where they were beaten 3-1 on aggregate by Real Madrid despite winning at the Santiago Bernabeu.
3) Schalke 1996-97 UEFA Cup
On the face of it, Schalke’s victorious 1997 UEFA Cup campaign may not seem too much of a shock but rewind 13 years and the Parkstadion-outfit were the talk of Europe. In a competition that had been dominated by Serie A for years, Schalke were complete minnows. Yet they made their way to the final by seeing off the likes of Tenerife and Valencia, and then stunned Inter on penalties to lift the trophy. Inter’s coach? Roy Hodgson.
2) Dundee United 1986-87 UEFA Cup
Dundee Utd produced a string of European shocks during the 1980s, including a run to the semi finals of the 1984 European Cup where they let a 2-0 first leg lead against Roma slip and a famous home-and-away win against the mighty Barcelona on the way to the 1987 UEFA Cup final. Miracle-making coach Jim McLean and star man Paul Sturrock couldn’t lead the Scots to glory, though, as they lost 2-1 on aggregate in the final to IFK Gothenburg.
1) Panathinaikos 1970-71 European Cup
Panathinaikos reaching the final today would be considered a shock, but to do so 40 years ago when Greek football was laughed at by Europe, and the national team had never qualified for a World Cup or Euros, was a biblical miracle. Coached by Hungarian legend Ferenc Puskas, The Greens eliminated Everton and Red Star Belgrade (after an epic semi final comeback) but were comfortably beaten by Johan Cruyff’s Ajax in the final 2-0.
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