Stories from Romanian Sports – Seville, 1986
On May 7, 1986 Steaua Bucharest won the European Champions' Cup
Florin Orban, 08.05.2020, 13:45
This week we
marked 34 years since one of the greatest achievements ever to be recorded in
Romanian football. On May 7, 1986, on Sanchez Pizjuan stadium in Seville,
Steaua Bucharest defeated FC Barcelona in the final of the European Champion’s
Cup, thus becoming the first team from Eastern Europe to win the prestigious
trophy.
Steaua had
reached the finals after brushing aside Vejle Bold Club of Denmark, Hungary’s
Honved Budapest, the Finnish club Kuusisi Lahti and Anderlecht Brussels of
Belgium. The match against the latter was reportedly the best performance of a
Romanian football team in European inter-club competitions.
The final
against Barcelona was played away from home. Steaua played before a 40-thousand-strong
Spanish crowd that had come to cheer their team towards its first victory in
the Champions’ Cup. Steaua’s lineup included Helmut Duckadam, Ştefan Iovan,
Adrian Bumbescu, Miodrag Belodedici, Ilie Bărbulescu, Gavrilă Balint, Ladislau
Bölöni, Ştefan Majearu, Lucian Bălan, Marius Lăcătuş, Victor Piţurcă, Marin
Radu (also known as Radu 2) and Anghel Iordănescu. Sitting on Steaua’s bench
was headcoach Emerich Jenei, co-assisted by Iordănescu. The biggest absence in
the first team lineup was the team captain, the very man who had had a solid
contribution to the team’s road to the final: Tudorel Stoica.
Barcelona turned
out to be a tough nut to crack for Steaua, but our team eventually displayed
superior technical prowess. The players defended well and mounted good
counter-attacks. 120 minutes of play went by with no goal scored on either
side. Then came the penalty shootout, and with it, the miracle. Steaua’s
goalkeeper Helmut Duckadam saved all four penalty kicks. Few people remember,
however, that the Spanish goalkeeper, the late Javier Urruticoechea, himself
saved two penalty kicks, which, alone, was a remarkable feat for a Champions’
Cup final. Scoring for Romania were Marius Lăcătuş and Gavrilă Balint, and the
final penalty kick saved by Duckadam committed the match to legend.
Many of the
first-team players who contributed to Steaua’s victory in ’86 are no longer
with us today. Our thoughts dwell particularly on Ion Alexandru, at the time
the head of the Football Division of STEAUA Army Club, but also players Lucian
Bălan and Ilie Bărbulescu. Most of the players who made up Steaua’s dream team
in 1986 are today professional coaches. Some have even compelled international
recognition, such as Victor Piţurcă, who helped Romania qualify to two European
Championships.
(Translated by
V. Palcu)
