1991 European Cup Final
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| Event | 1990–91 European Cup | ||||||
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After extra time Red Star Belgrade won 5–3 on penalties | |||||||
| Date | 29 May 1991 | ||||||
| Venue | Stadio San Nicola, Bari | ||||||
| Referee | Tullio Lanese (Italy) | ||||||
| Attendance | 51,587 | ||||||
The 1991 European Cup Final was a football match held at the Stadio San Nicola in Bari, Italy, on 29 May 1991, that saw Red Star Belgrade of Yugoslavia[lower-alpha 1] defeat Marseille of France in a penalty shoot-out. After normal time and extra time could not separate the two sides, the match was to be decided on penalty kicks. Manuel Amoros's miss for the French side proved crucial, as Red Star held their nerve to win their first European Cup.
Road to the final
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Round |  | ||||||
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| Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |
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5–2 | 1–1 (H) | 4–1 (A) | First round | .svg.png){kind=small} |
5–1 | 5–1 (H) | 0–0 (A) |
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4–1 | 3–0 (H) | 1–1 (A) | Second round |  |
8–4 | 2–3 (A) | 6–1 (H) |
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5–1 | 3–0 (H) | 2–1 (A) | Quarter-finals |  |
4–1 | 1–1 (A) | 3–0 (H) |
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4–3 | 2–1 (A) | 2–2 (H) | Semi-finals |  |
5–2 | 3–1 (A) | 2–1 (H) |
Lead-up to the match
Red Star arrived in Italy unusually early, on Thursday, 23 May 1991, six full days ahead of the final. The team set up base in the town of Monopoli, 40 kilometres (25 mi) south-east of Bari. There they stayed in Il Melograno Hotel and trained at the facilities of A.C. Monopoli.[3] Due to a lot of interest from richer European clubs already being raised for the future services of young Red Star players, the club management tried to ensure its footballers were fully focused on the task at hand. The players were placed in semi-quarantine immediately upon arrival in Italy, which meant being separated from wives and girlfriends without the ability to receive incoming phone calls in hotel rooms, though able to make outgoing calls.[4]
Over the coming days, the club also organized for a large entourage consisting of former players and coaches, friends of the club, etc. to arrive in Bari in order to watch Red Star in its very first European Cup final. Therefore, club legends Rajko Mitić and Dragoslav Šekularac, notable former players Srđan Mrkušić, Stanislav Karasi, club's former coach Miša Pavić along with Serbian celebrities and public personalities such as Ljuba Tadić, Ivan Bekjarev, Bora Đorđević, etc. made their way to Italy.[5]
Match
Details
| Red Star Belgrade |
0–0 (a.e.t.) | |
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| Report | ||
| Penalties | ||
Prosinečki  Binić Belodedici Mihajlović Pančev |
5–3 |  |
        Red Star Belgrade
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     Marseille
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Assistant referees:
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Match rules
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Analysis
Over twenty years later in 2011, talking to a French football magazine about the famous win in Bari, Siniša Mihajlović said:
| “ | That final is still very vivid in my memory. I think it was the most boring final match in European Cup history. A few hours before the match, seven of us were shown tapes with Olympique matches. I remember [manager] Ljupko Petrović telling us: 'If we attack them we'll leave ourselves open for counterattacks', to which I asked 'so, what do we do then'. His answer was: 'When you get the ball, give it back to them'. So we spent 120 minutes on the pitch without practically touching the ball. The match went to penalties, [Marseille player] Manuel Amoros failed to convert his whereas we converted all five. Had we approached the match with an attacking mentality, we probably would've lost, not because Olympique were necessarily better than us, but because their players were used to playing big matches like this one. We had a squad full of 21, 22, and 23-year-old kids.[6] | ” |
See also
Notes
- ↑ UEFA conventionally refers to Red Star Belgrade by the club's Serbian-language name, Crvena Zvezda. Since the breakup of SFR Yugoslavia, the club competes under the auspices of its successor Serbian Football Association.[1][2]
References
- ↑ "1990/91: Crvena Zvezda spot on". Archive: UEFA Champions League. UEFA. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
- ↑ "Member associations: Serbia: Honours". UEFA. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
- ↑ Red Star in Bari
- ↑ Red Star in Bari
- ↑ Red Star in Bari
- ↑ Mihajlović: Finale u Bariju najdosadnije u istoriji Archived October 7, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.;sportal.rs, 12 September 2011
External links
- 1990–91 season at UEFA website (in English)
- 1991 European Cup Final at European Cup History