Man Utd at Camp Nou: Scene of the Red Devils' finest hour in 1999
There is something uniquely special about Manchester United and the European Cup.
United were the first English club to enter the competition in 1956, defying the wishes of the Football League in the process, later also becoming the first English club to win it in 1968 – 10 years after the tragedy that was the Munich air disaster.
When the European Cup was modernised into the Champions League, United were the first English club to win that too. It was the final piece of an historic treble sealed over a magical 10 days in May 1999 that, as yet, still remains unmatched by any other English side.
After reaching the semi-finals of the 1968/69 European Cup, United then didn’t play in the continent’s top competition for more nearly 25 years. Long before the days multiple entrants per country, it was exclusively limited to champions (or the European Cup holders) and United’s domestic title drought that spanned 26 years from 1967 to 1993 kept them out of it.
Leeds, crowned English champions in 1991/92, were actually the first English club to play in the ‘Champions League’. But with United going on to dominate the early Premier League era in the 1990s, they became mainstays of Europe’s elite competitions once more.
It wasn’t all plain sailing though. United struggled in Europe in both 1993/94 and 1994/95, exiting the Champions League at the group stage or earlier. But they had a breakthrough in 1996/97, reaching the semi-finals before losing to eventual champions Borussia Dortmund.
The 1997/98 campaign presented a bit of a setback, dumped out in the last eight by a vibrant young Monaco team. But in 1998/99, a United side with a home-grown core that had by then been developing together for several years felt ready.
There is an old cliché in sport that says if you want to be the best you have to beat the best. No message was truer when the Champions League group stage draw threw out both Barcelona and Bayern Munich. What’s more, the format of the competition in those days meant only one team per group was guaranteed a place in the knockouts and only two more places between six runners-up.
United’s first visit to Camp Nou that season was in the group stage on matchday five. By then, United had already played out an epic 3-3 draw against the Catalans at Old Trafford, with David Beckham scoring a particularly memorable free-kick. A draw with Bayern Munich and back-to-back wins over Brondby left the group delicately poised as United flew to Spain.
All being well, they would be back there in May for the final.
Another 3-3 draw, this time dominated by Rivaldo, was another epic contest that swung back and forth. But it effectively knocked Barcelona out and handed Bayern the initiative in the group. United still had the chance to win the group, but couldn’t see off Bayern at Old Trafford – the 1-1 draw saw the Germans automatically go through to the knockouts and left United at the mercy of other results. Had Galatasaray or Lens won that night, football history could have been very different.
United were relatively assured in their quarter-final against a strong Inter. Two Dwight Yorke headers from David Beckham crosses in the first leg at Old Trafford provided an ultimately decisive cushion, while a Henning Berg masterclass against Ronaldo at San Siro was also a vital contribution.
The semi-final was less straightforward. Juventus had been like the immovable object for United in the preceding years, beating the Red Devils 1-0 on three occasions since 1996. A clip of Gary Neville after the group stage saw him look physically sick after hearing the answer to “Juventus qualified?”
The first leg was a hard-fought battle that ended 1-1 and a slight advantage to Juventus after a late Ryan Giggs equaliser cancelled out Antonio Conte’s first half goal. But Juve took their lead to the next level with two Filippo Inzaghi goals in the first 11 minutes of the second leg in Turin.
Roy Keane’s performance in turning the tie around is the stuff of legend. But it came at a cost. In overstretching for the ball, the United captain picked up a yellow card and a suspension that ruled him out of the final – Paul Scholes would also suffer a similar fate.
Such was the away goals rule at the time, a 2-2 draw in Turin would have sufficed for United to reach the final and get back to Barcelona. Keane’s header and one from Yorke came way earlier in the game than anyone now remembers, but it was Andy Cole’s late strike that really sealed things.
"Full speed ahead, Barcelona!"
- Clive Tyldesley
And so to Camp Nou again as United prepared for a first European Cup final in 31 years. Fittingly, the date of the final, 26 May 1999, would also have been the late Sir Matt Busby’s 90th birthday.
With an unprecedented treble on the line, first there was the small matter of the Premier League and FA Cup first. By the time United had booked their place in the Champions League final, Giggs’ solo extra-time winner against Arsenal had already secured passage to Wembley in the FA Cup. Yet another six Premier League games and the Gunners fighting hard meant there was still work to do.
It went all the way to the final day of the league season. Tottenham actually took the lead at Old Trafford, but goals either side of half-time – the second from Cole an iconic control and finish – completed part one. Newcastle in the FA Cup final six days after was much more straightforward, a game heavily influenced by early substitute Teddy Sheringham after Keane’s injury.
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Bayern Munich had a slightly more favourable route to the Champions League final, very comfortably seeing off fellow German side Kaiserslautern in the quarter-finals and then avoiding an upset against an impressive young Dynamo Kyiv in the semis.
As United and Bayern walked out onto the Camp Nou pitch, there had been nothing to separate them that season. But immediately United were up against it because their two starting central midfielders were suspended, requiring a complete reshuffle in the centre of the park.
Mario Basler’s early free-kick, beating a less than solid wall, made matters far worse.
Somehow, United stayed in the game. Mehmet Scholl hit the post with a delicious chip in the second half that would have sealed it in Bayern’s favour. Carsten Jancker also hit the bar that would have done the same. And yet, when the game ticked into stoppage time, there was still a chance.
David Beckham’s delivery from set-pieces all season had been a massive weapon. And by the closing stages, Alex Ferguson had seen fit to put both Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and FA Cup match-winner Sheringham onto the pitch in an attempt to get his team back into it.
"Can Manchester United score? They always score..."
- Clive Tyldesley
A corner seconds after the initial 90 minutes had elapsed even saw Peter Schmeichel – in what was already planned to be his last ever game for the club – charge forward. The goalkeeper had long had a reputation as a goalscorer and even netted once for United in the UEFA Cup in 1995.
Schmeichel didn’t get on the end of Beckham’s whipped ball into the box, but his presence caused sufficient panic. The ball was only partially cleared by Bayern and when Giggs swung a right leg at the ball to send it back goalward, Sheringham did the same and nestled it into the bottom corner.
Resigned to a bitter defeat only seconds earlier, the thousands of United fans inside Camp Nou were suddenly in a state of delirium.
"In towards Schmeichel. Cleared! Giggs with a shot...SHERINGHAM!"
- Clive Tyldesley
Meanwhile, Bayern had been mere moments away from their first European Cup since 1976 and Lothar Matthaus was about to get his hands on the only trophy that still eluded him. But United, with their never say die attitude that had been seen all season up to that point, had forced extra-time and bought themselves another half hour.
At least, that was what people thought.
With Bayern sucker punched and suddenly on the ropes, another Beckham corner made the impossible possible. Sheringham rose highest at the near post, flicking the ball on. Solskjaer, already known as the super-sub in the squad, instinctively stuck out his right boot as the ball flashed by him, directing it high into the net past a dumbfounded Oliver Kahn.
"Beckham, into Sheringham...AND SOLSKJAER HAS WON IT!"
- Clive Tyldesley
The iconic lines of commentary delivered by Clive Tyldesley for ITV that night and throughout the campaign have become just as much a part of the history.
There was no more time for Bayern to respond. Even if there had been, the nature the turnaround would likely have been too much to get up from - their chance came back in 2001. United were European champions again after more than 31 years of waiting, a truly incredible night at Camp Nou that will always mean the stadium has a special place in the club’s history and in the hearts of fans.