They've lost all of one La Liga match all season, and sit a comfortable five points clear of second-place Real Madrid. I realize this season is far from over for Barca, but if results so far are any indication, we're dealing with a team angling to make history. They would wind up as runner ups in the International Cup, but the Portuguese side's legacy had been secured. After Marc Coluna tied things up, Benfica's star went into full-on supernova, blasting a pair of goals through to give Benfica a stunning 5-3 win, and their second straight European crown. In the early going, di Stefano showed why many saw him as the world's best player, scoring a hat trick to put Real up 3-2.īut, Eusebio wouldn't go down without a fight. Many thought the team had been fortunate to escape Barcelona in 1961, so when they prepared to take on a Real Madrid squad still featuring Ferenc Puskas, Alfredo di Stefano, and Luis del Sol in the 1962 European Cup finals, few thought they stood a chance. Led by the incredibly talented Portuguese striker of Mozambiquan descent, Benfica had become the first team not named Real Madrid to win the European Cup in 1961, but they weren't done yet. There weren't many trophies at Emirates Stadium that season, as the Gunners fell to Chelsea in the Champion's League quarterfinals, to Manchester United in the FA Cup semis and fell in the Carling Cup semis as well.Įven so, with the dominance of their domestic season, the Gunners more than merit a spot on the list.ĭuring the 1960's, one player and one team were able to successfully break Real Madrid's stranglehold on European competition: Eusebio and his Benfica squads of the early 1960's. Led by Ashley Cole, Sol Campbell and Kolo Toure, and anchored by Jens Lehmann, Arsenal's back line was as sturdy as they come. The difference is the Gunners had a defense worthy of their elite attack. With a dynamic attack featuring forwards Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry (Robin van Persie and Cesc Fabregas were a part of the squad, but didn't play a match for Arsenal) and aided by the likes of Patrick Viera, Freddy Ljundberg, Gilberto and Robert Pires in the midfield, the Gunners attack was as formidable as it is today. Led by manager Arsene Wenger, the Gunners finished the season undefeated, the first side since Preston North End in 1889 to accomplish such a feat in English football. No team in the modern era of football has found more success in domestic competition than the 2003-04 Arsenal side that ran roughshod over the English Premier League. Sadly, it would not last, as the Hungarian government collapsed in 1956, and the Honved players scattered to the winds, never getting the chance to win a European Cup. It worked, as the Hungarians fell 3-2 in 1953, but not before establishing themselves as the dominant force in European football. The Might Magyars ran roughshod over much of Europe and pushed English club Wolverhampton Wanderers to the brink of defeat and would have were it not for serious gamesmanship from Wolves manager Stan Cullis, who ordered the pitch flooded to prevent Honved from using their precise passes to full effect. What a team it was, too! Led by some of the brightest stars of the day, including goal scorers Ferenc Puskas and Sandor Kocsis, winger Zoltan Czibor, midfielder Laszlo Budai and goalkeepers Gyula Lorant and Gyula Grosics. When the military took over Hungarian club Kispest FC in Budapest, they immediately took all of the top players from rival teams to essentially create a practice squad for the Hungarian national team.
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