The UEFA Champions League is a competition which pits the best in Europe against each other as they do battle for the ultimate prize in club football.
This leads up to nights which are etched onto the minds of football fans as the very best of European Football produce some of their very best to not only wow the watching world but also to write their names into the history of the game.
Imagine the fervour around the UEFA Champions League final when two of the best teams in Europe collide. Now imagine the same fervour when this crucial game is played between domestic arch-rivals.
The intensity of these games is often raised tenfold when Europe’s ultimate prize also becomes the opportunity to transform into the ultimate bragging right as two local rivals go toe to toe with more than just pride on the line.
So, how many times have such nights come to be exactly? Let us look at 5 times when rivals met in the Champions League final right here.
1999-2000: Real Madrid vs Valencia
Most folk wouldn’t consider Real Madrid and Valencia as traditional rivals at present but back in the time, many would’ve sworn that it was after this game that Valencia were transformed into a team that went on to rival the Galacticos and snatch La Liga titles away from them twice.
In 1999-2000, Hector Cuper had guided an unfancied Valencia side, into the finals of the UEFA Champions League. On their way, they had impressively beaten Barcelona and Lazio by the same 5-3 aggregate score and seemed to be considered as possible candidates to upset Real Madrid’s party on the night.
This game had already achieved a place in history as the first UEFA Champions League final to be played between two teams from the same League. On the night, at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, 80,000 people saw Real Madrid run away with their eighth European Cup.
Vicente Del Bosque’s Real Madrid side went two goals up courtesy some fantastic work by Fernando Morientes who opened the scoring and Steve McManaman who scored the second. Club legend Raul then completed the rout with a third to seal the game.
2002-03: Juventus vs AC Milan
The battle for the Scudetto was once a torrid affair with two of Italy’s greatest clubs involved in many a battle for their local glory in the Serie A. However, this was the first time that two Italian clubs battled it out for the UEFA Champions League. On a cold night at Manchester, Old Trafford bore witness to one of European football’s most charged up finals.
Carlo Ancelotti had just guided the Milanese side to 4th in the Serie A with Marcello Lippi’s Juventus snatching away the Scudetto with a 16 point gap between the two teams settling terms locally.
The two games in the Serie A between them had resulted in a draw at the San Siro and a marginal victory for Juventus at the Stadio delle Alpi. The Coppa Italia had seen Juventus knocking out Milan 3-2 on aggregate as well that season. There was much to be avenged for Milan that night.
Avenge their wounds they did as Carlo Ancelotti’s men ran out 3-2 winners on penalties that night as the two teams drew 0-0 after extra time. David Trezeguet, Marcelo Zalayeta and Paolo Montero all missed penalties for Juventus in a game that saw Paolo Maldini awarded with the Man of the Match award and which ended with AC Milan winning their 6th European Title.
2007-08: Manchester United vs Chelsea
Very few games can match up to the mad fervour that surrounds two English sides meeting in the UEFA Champions League final and so it was the same with the 2007-08 finals as 67,000 people gathered at the Luzhniki Stadium in Russia and 17.5 million viewers across the world tuned in to see Manchester United and Chelsea battle it out for the greatest prize in Europe that fateful evening.
Manchester United had already wrapped up the league title much to the disgruntlement of Chelsea’s charges who were having a rough season of their own. Jose Mourinho, the man who was leading the Chelsea brigade at the season start had made way for Avram Grant, who in spite of a stop-start season in the Premier League had brought out the best in the Londoners in Europe.
The London-based side looked to be heading for a maiden European Cup and had high hopes of the game which began disastrously as Cristiano Ronaldo fired Sir Alex Ferguson’s charges into the lead with a header in the first half. Shortly after, Frank Lampard came to his side’s rescue as he leveled before half time.
The second half and even much of extra time seemed to go on without much incident as both sides seemed to be at their best before Didier Drogba was sent off for slapping Nemanja Vidic four minutes from full time.
There was, even more, drama to come in the shootout as Cristiano Ronaldo missed his spot kick to allow John Terry a chance to seal the cup for Chelsea. John Terry, however, inexplicably slipped and missed his shot completely taking the game into sudden death.
Anderson, Salomon Kalou and Ryan Giggs got their spot kicks right but Edwin van der Sar saved from Nicolas Anelka to crown Manchester United winners of the UEFA Champions League and himself the Man of the Match.
2012-13: Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayern Munich
The first all-German final in the UEFA Champions League saw Wembley play host to two of the most exciting teams in Europe as Jurgen Klopp’s electric Borussia Dortmund side took on Jupp Heynckes’ all-conquering Bayern Munich juggernaut.
This Bayern side had already wrapped up the Bundesliga in record time and the Dortmund side had just knocked out Real Madrid in the semi-final to seal their place in the final at Wembley. This was set up to be a completely tectonic scale battle between the two sides and so it proved to be as the final was played with incredible intensity by both teams.
The match saw Borussia Dortmund completely outplay Bayern Munich in the first half hour as Jurgen Klopp’s famed Geggenpressing saw Bayern lose control completely. Manuel Neuer made as many as 5 saves in the opening 35 minutes as he effectively kept his team in the game.
However, shortly into the second half, Mario Mandzukic opened the scoring for Bayern Munich who ran rings around the Dortmund defence as the forward linked up with Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery for a flurry of exchanges.
Bayern defender, Dante then kicked Marco Reus in the stomach in his penalty box to allow Ilkay Gundogan to level things up from the spot. Yet it was to be heartbreak for this Dortmund side as a minute from normal time, Ribery found Arjen Robben with a backheel pass and the Dutch attacker poked the ball past an onrushing Roman Weidenfeller to settle what was claimed by many as the most intense final played in the competition.
2013-14: Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid
The 2013-14 UEFA Champions League final was a special game in the history of European Football. Not only were Real Madrid in hot pursuit of “La Decima”, their 10th European Cup but it was special that the team standing in their path to the cup were local rivals, Atletico Madrid.
Diego Simeone had transformed Real’s much-ignored rivals into one of the strongest teams in Europe and when pitted against Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid, this UEFA Champions League final became the first such game in the history of the competition to be contested by two teams from the same city!
Atletico Madrid came into the game with the La Liga title safely in their hands and they wanted to achieve an unprecedented double. They seemed on course to achieve the same as the talismanic Diego Godin headed his team into the lead, one which lasted all through the second half only for Sergio Ramos to head in the equalizer for Real in third minutes of additional time to take the game into extra time.
In extra time, Real Madrid came into their own, as goals from Gareth Bale, Marcelo and Cristiano Ronaldo made the scoreline read 4-1 in favour of Real who had just wrapped up “La Decima” in style.
