Number Five: 2010 - Inter Milan 2-0 Bayern Munich
Many
people call Jose Mourinho boring, which I think is an insult to the
masterful defensive tactics he employs. The 2010 final was arguably the
most potent example of counter-attacking football you'll ever see. With a
Diego Milito goal in each half, I Nerazzurri lifted the trophy
for the first time in 45 years over a Bayern Munich team managed by The
Special One's now Premier League rival, Louis van Gaal. Despite being
able to call on the firepower of Mario Gomez and Miroslav Klose from the
bench, Bayern simply couldn't get past Julio Cesar at his brilliant
best on multiple occasions.
On top of all of that, Mourinho's
man-motivational skills are such that he managed to get Samuel Eto'o to
play as a winger with a high defensive workrate for the entire match.
Number Four: 2002 - Real Madrid 2-1 Bayer Leverkusen
An even contest which gains a spot on this list due to one absolute
moment of brilliance from Zinedine Zidane. After Raul's early goal was
cancelled out by Lucio, just moments before half-time the French
midfielder unleashed a rasping volley with his weaker foot into the top
corner of Hans-Jorg Butt's net (who, funnily enough, was also on the
losing end for Bayern Munich in 2008). It was Real Madrid's ninth
combined Champions League/European Cup win, but most people remember
this season for Bayer Leverkusen's horrible luck - where they went from a potential treble to winning nothing at all in a couple of catastrophic weeks. Star player Michael Ballack was then part of the squad who would lose the World Cup final a month later. Ouch.
Number Three: 2012 - Chelsea 1-1 Bayern Munich (4-3 on penalties)
Chelsea's
journey to becoming the Kings of Europe was so unlikely that I can
still hardly believe that happened. They looked down and out against
Napoli, they looked down and out against Barcelona and with three
minutes to goal in the final, they looked down and out against Bayern
Munich. Thomas Muller had put the Germans ahead in the 83rd minute and
Bayern had been so dominant throughout the match that it looked
impossible to imagine the Blues coming back - but nobody told Didier
Drogba. The Ivorian's late equaliser followed by Petr Cech's penalty
save of Arjen Robben in extra time set up a penalty shootout...and after
Bastian Schweinsteiger missed the fifth penalty for his team - Drogba
stepped up and potted the winner.
Number Two: 1999 - Manchester United 2-1 Bayern Munich
"And Solksjaer has won it!!"
Perhaps
the most iconic line of football commentary ever uttered. Like or
loathe Manchester United, it's impossible to not regard the last couple
of minutes of this game as the stuff of fairytales. Facing a 1-0 deficit
at Barcelona's Camp Nou, the Red Devils won a corner in the first
minute of stoppage time - and with the entire team, including keeper
Peter Schmeichel, thrown forward, Beckham's ball in wasn't cleared
before a shot from Ryan Giggs was scuffed, but steered into the net by
Teddy Sheringham. Less than 90 seconds later, another corner came in
from Beckham, and history was made by the Norwegian substitute.
Number One: 2005 - Liverpool 3-3 AC Milan (3-2 on penalties)
Could
there be any other number one? All of the drama of 1999 was crammed
into 120 seconds of unbelievable scenes, but six years later, when
United's biggest rivals lifted the trophy for the fifth time, it was 75
minutes of utter bewilderment. After going down 3-0 thanks to a double
from Hernan Crespo and a first-minute goal from Milan skipper Paolo
Maldini, the Reds looked dead and buried at half-time. In what has
become known as Steven Gerrard's finest moment Liverpool refused to lie
down and mounted one of the most stunning comebacks in sporting history,
completed with Andriy Shevchenko's penalty being saved by Polish
goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek in the most unlikely of victories. It's hard to
believe that was 10 years ago.
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