When we were Kings of Europe
Paul Cuddihy
TODAY, May 25, 2010, marks the 43rd anniversary of Celtic’s greatest football achievement, when Jock Stein’s side defeated Inter Milan 2-1 in Lisbon to lift the European Cup.
That triumph in 1967 remains one that every Celtic supporter is immensely proud of, and the Lisbon Lions are revered figures in the club’s history.
Celtic’s progress to the final in the Portuguese capital began with a first-round meeting with Swiss side, FC Zurich. A 2-0 home win thanks to goals from Tommy Gemmell and Joe McBride was followed up by a 3-0 victory in Switzerland to set up a meeting with Nantes.
The Hoops won the first leg in France 3-1 and repeated that scoreline a week later at Celtic Park.
The quarter-final saw Celtic face Vojvodina, and it was the Yugoslavian champions who won the first leg 1-0. A dramatic return match in Glasgow in front of 75,000 was only decided in the last minute, when Billy McNeill’s header gave the Hoops a 2-0 win on the night.
In the semi-final, Dukla Prague were beaten 3-1 in the first leg at Celtic Park thanks to goals from Jimmy Johnstone and a Willie Wallace double. And a determined performance in Prague saw the tie finish 0-0 and Celtic were into the European Cup final.
Italian giants Inter Milan were the opposition, and they took the lead on just seven minutes when they were awarded a penalty.
But Jock Stein’s side provided a masterful display of attacking football that was eventually rewarded with two goals. Tommy Gemmell equalised on 63 minutes and Stevie Chalmers knocked in the winner with five minutes of the match remaining.
The 11 men wearing green and white Hoops became legends that day: Simpson, Craig, Gemmell, Murdoch, McNeill, Clark, Johnstone, Wallace, Chalmers, Auld, Lennox.
It was a triumph for the beautiful game and Celtic were the kings of Europe.
THE LIONS OF LISBON
“IT was absolutely incredible when we went on to the pitch. Even I was surprised and I shouldn’t be because the fans have welcomed us so often and so well. To be fair, the Lions have never ventured away from the fans, the fans have always been part and parcel of the Lions’ lives. And I think that we have been really good ambassadors through the years but to still be welcomed and to still mean so much to a lot of people’s lives means an awful lot to us.”
BILLY McNEILL
“ON the day itself and even when we returned to Glasgow, the whole thing was just a bit overwhelming. There were people waiting for us at the airport and as we travelled along the streets to Celtic Park there were thousands of people lining the roadsides. At the park itself there were thousands more and the scenes were just incredible. I think that game must have changed our lives but most importantly, it gave the club confidence when it went into Europe over the next few years. For us as players, at the time, that was the most important thing and we went on to do well over the next four or five years in Europe, so I would say that it changed our lives. But some of the day itself is a bit of a blur, although I do remember one moment very clearly. When the final whistle went I just remember turning and jumping into wee John Clarke’s arms. He’ll not want to admit that he gave me a cuddle that day – but he did!”
BOBBY LENNOX
“I REMEMBER Bobby Lennox wanted to cuddle me and I certainly didn’t want to cuddle him, because I am particular and you can put that on record! That day we achieved something that I don’t think that any of us had ever imagined, none of us ever thought that we would be a part of the team that made that history for the club. It’s a thing that will never go away, that is until the next Celtic team, hopefully, win the European Cup again. In Jock Stein’s era and for years afterwards, the philosophy was to make sure that we had the best attacking teams, teams that went out to do the business. As a player, it was great to play in that style and be a part of that philosophy. But most importantly I think it’s just important to be a part of the history.”
JOHN CLARK
“IT was a fantastic thing to happen to all of us and we are all very privileged to have come through it and been involved in it is just amazing. It is great to still be remembered for something that you did over 40 years ago, that is just the bit that continually gets me. Wherever you go you are reminded of it and when that happens, it just brings it home how much it means to everyone who is connected with Celtic, to win that cup on that particular day.”
JIM CRAIG
“I NOT only remember the goal, but I also remember everything about the game itself because when you win something as monumental as that you don’t usually forget anything about it. The thing about the goal was that I had been screaming at Jim Craig three times for him to cut it back to me and it was only the third time that he cut it back to me. He actually drew a defender toward him and then he cut it back and, of course, the rest is history.”
TOMMY GEMMELL
“I CAN visualise the goal now and it was one of these things that, believe it or not, had been worked on in training up with Jock Stein. The position I was in could have been filled by anyone, it could have been Bobby Lennox or Willie Wallace just as easily as it could have been me. But that night, although I felt we were all over them, Inter showed that they were a great defending team and Jock’s plan for us was based on movement. The likes of Willie, Bobby and myself would drop deep and pull the Italians into stupid positions, with our movement allowing the space for Tommy Gemmell, Jim Craig and Bertie Auld to go forward and Inter weren’t expecting that. It just happened that I was further forward at the moment of the goal and just as Bobby Murdoch shot at goal, I nipped round the back of my marker to put it into the back of the net."
STEVIE CHALMERS
“BEFORE the game we were immaculate and the Hoops are always a stand-out. When you pulled them on you seemed to grow a couple of inches and your chest would puff out with pride. There was big Billy McNeill at the front, over six-foot tall and barrel-chested. There was also Bobby Murdoch who was a great player and a giant of a man and then at the back there were the wee ones, like myself and John Clark – although luckily enough we were the ones who had all our own teeth! For years I used to think that Ronnie was a dentist, because of the number of teeth he used to carry about in his bunnet! But thinking back, the sun hitting the Hoops that day just made them look fantastic.”
BERTIE AULD
