The 1973 UEFA Cup Final was an
association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
match played over
two-legs between
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
of England and
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e. V. Mönchengladbach, commonly known as Borussia Mönchengladbach (), Mönchengladbach () or Gladbach (; abbreviated as Borussia MG, BMG), is a professional Association football, football club based in ...
of West Germany. The first leg was played at
Anfield
Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...
, Liverpool on 10 May 1973 and the second leg was played on 23 May 1973 at the
Bökelbergstadion
The Bökelbergstadion () was a Association football, football stadium in Mönchengladbach, Germany.
History
It was the home of Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach before Borussia-Park opened in 2004. The stadium had a capacity of up to 34, ...
, Mönchengladbach. It was the final of the
1972–73 season of Europe's secondary cup competition, the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
. Liverpool and Mönchengladbach were both appearing in their first final, although Liverpool had previously reached the final of the
European Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...
losing 2–1 to
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
.
Each club needed to progress through four rounds to reach the final. Matches were contested over two legs, with a match at each team's home ground. The majority of Liverpool's ties were won by at least two goals, the exception was the semi-final against
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
, which Liverpool won on the
away goals rule
The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaker, tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the ...
. Borussia Mönchengladbach's ties were predominantly one-sided. The West German team won by at least four goals in all four of their ties, a 9–2 aggregate victory over
1. FC Kaiserslautern represented their biggest margin of victory.
Watched by a crowd of 41,169 at Anfield, Liverpool took the lead in the first leg when
Kevin Keegan
Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and ...
scored in the 21st minute. Another goal by Keegan in the first half, extended Liverpool's lead and a further goal by
Larry Lloyd
Laurence Valentine Lloyd (born 6 October 1948) is an English retired association football central defender and manager. He won domestic and European honours for both Bill Shankly's Liverpool and Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest in the 1970s.
...
meant Liverpool won the first leg 3–0. Therefore, in the second leg at the Bökelbergstadion, Liverpool had to avoid losing by three clear goals to win the competition. A crowd of 34,905 watched Borussia take the lead in the 29th minute courtesy of a
Jupp Heynckes
Josef "Jupp" Heynckes (; born 9 May 1945) is a German retired professional footballer and manager. The majority of his player career was as a striker for Borussia Mönchengladbach in its golden era of the 1960s and '70s, when they won many nati ...
goal, he scored again 11 minutes later to double Borussia's lead. Borussia were unable to find the third goal they needed to take the match into extra-time and won the second leg 2–0. Thus, Liverpool won the final 3–2 on aggregate to win their first European trophy.
Route to the final
Liverpool
Liverpool qualified for the UEFA Cup as a result of finishing third in the
1971–72 Football League First Division. Their opponents in the first round were West German team
Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The team is currently playing in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the Germa ...
. Liverpool won the first leg at their home ground,
Anfield
Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...
, 2–0. The second leg at Frankfurt's home ground the
Waldstadion ended in a 0–0 draw, which meant Liverpool progressed to the second round with a 2–0 aggregate victory.
Greek team
AEK Athens
A.E.K ( el, AEK , formally Αθλητική Ένωσις Κωνσταντινουπόλεως; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople''), known as A.E.K, is a major Greece, Greek multi-sport club based in Nea ...
were the opposition. Liverpool won the first leg at Anfield 3–0, a 3–1 victory at AEK's home ground the
Nikos Goumas Stadium
Nikos Goumas Stadium ( el, Στάδιο Νίκος Γκούμας) was a multi-purpose stadium in Nea Filadelfeia, a northwestern suburb of Athens, Greece. It was used mostly for football matches and was the home stadium of AEK Athens F.C. It is ...
ensured Liverpool won the tie 6–1 on aggregate.
The opposition in the third round were
Dynamo Berlin of East Germany. The first leg at Dynamo's home ground the
Sportforum ended in a 0–0 draw. The second leg at Anfield was more eventful Liverpool took the lead through
Phil Boersma
Philip Boersma (born 24 September 1949 in Kirkby) is an English former professional footballer, who played as a midfield/striker for Liverpool and Middlesbrough among others.
Life and playing career
He began his career with Liverpool, signin ...
in the first minute and Dynamo equalised six minutes later. Two further goals for Liverpool secured a 3–1 victory in the match and on aggregate.
In the quarter-finals Liverpool again faced East German opposition, their opponents were
Dynamo Dresden
Sportgemeinschaft Dynamo Dresden e.V., commonly known as SG Dynamo Dresden or Dynamo Dresden, are a German association football club based in Dresden, Saxony.Grüne, Hardy (2001). Enzyklopädie des deutschen Ligafußballs 7. Vereinslexikon. Kasse ...
. Liverpool won the first leg 2–0 at Anfield, and they won the second leg 1–0 in East Germany, to beat Dresden 3–0 on aggregate.
Reigning champions
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
were the opposition in the semi-final. Liverpool won an attacking match at Anfield 1–0. The second leg at
White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane was a Association football, football stadium in Tottenham, North London and the home of Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur Football Club from 1899 to 2017. Its capacity varied over the years; when changed to all-seater i ...
was equally eventful. Tottenham took the lead in the second half when
Martin Peters
Martin Stanford Peters (8 November 1943 – 21 December 2019) was an English footballer and manager. As a member of the England team which won the 1966 FIFA World Cup, he scored the second of England's four goals in the final against West Germa ...
scored to give Spurs the lead. Seven minutes Liverpool equalised when
Steve Heighway
Stephen Derek Heighway (born 25 November 1947) is an Irish former footballer who was part of the hugely successful Liverpool team of the 1970s. Following his eleven-year spell at the club, he has been regarded by some as one of the greatest Li ...
scored this levelled the match and gave Liverpool a 2–1 lead on aggregate. Tottenham went 2–1 up when Peters scored again, this levelled the aggregate score at 2–2, but Liverpool had scored an
away goal
The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the team that ...
, and would, therefore, progress to the next round as a result.
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia qualified for the UEFA Cup courtesy of a third-place finish in the
1971–72 Bundesliga
The 1971–72 Bundesliga was the ninth season of the Bundesliga, West Germany's premier football league. It began on 14 August 1971 and ended on 28 June 1972. Borussia Mönchengladbach were the defending champions.
Competition modus
Every team p ...
. The opposition in the first round were Scottish side
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
. The first leg was held at Aberdeen's home ground
Pittodrie
Pittodrie Stadium, commonly referred to as Pittodrie, is an all-seater stadium in Aberdeen, Scotland. Used primarily for football, it has been the home ground of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) club Aberdeen F.C. since they wer ...
, with Borussia winning 3–2. The second leg at Borussia's home ground the
Bökelbergstadion
The Bökelbergstadion () was a Association football, football stadium in Mönchengladbach, Germany.
History
It was the home of Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach before Borussia-Park opened in 2004. The stadium had a capacity of up to 34, ...
was won 6–3 by the West German side, this meant they qualified for the second round courtesy of a 9–5 aggregate victory.
Danish side
Hvidovre IF
Hvidovre Idrætsforening, more commonly known as Hvidovre IF () is a Denmark, Danish professional association football, football club based in Hvidovre. The club competes in the Danish 1st Division, the second tier of Danish football league syste ...
were the opposition in the second round. A 3–0 victory in West Germany was followed by a 3–1 victory in Denmark to secure a 6–1 aggregate victory for Borussia.
Fellow West German side
1. FC Köln were the opposition in the third round. The first leg at Köln's home ground the
Müngersdorfer Stadion ended in a 0–0 draw. Borussia easily won the second leg at their home ground 5–0 to win the tie by the same score on aggregate.
They were again drawn against West German opposition in the quarter-finals, the team in this instance was
1. FC Kaiserslautern. The first leg held at Kaiserlautern's home ground the
Fritz-Walter-Stadion
Fritz-Walter-Stadion () is the home stadium of 1. FC Kaiserslautern and is located in the city of Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It was one of the stadia used in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. It is named after Fritz Walter (1920–20 ...
was won 2–1 by Borussia and a 7–1 victory in the second leg at their home ground ensured they progressed to the semi-finals courtesy of a 9–2 aggregate victory.
Dutch team
Twente
Twente ( nl, Twente , Tweants dialect: ''Tweante'') is a region in the eastern Netherlands. It encompasses the most urbanised and easternmost part of the province of Overijssel. Twente is most likely named after the Tuihanti or Tvihanti, a Germ ...
were Borussia's opposition in the semi-finals. The first leg was held in West Germany and Borussia won 3–0 to put themselves in a good position to reach the final going into the second leg in the Netherlands. Borussia won the second leg 2–1 to win the tie 5–1 on aggregate and progress to their first European final.
Background
Liverpool were appearing in their second European final. They had previously lost
2–1 in the final of the
1965–66 European Cup Winners' Cup
The 1965–66 season of the European Cup Winners' Cup club football tournament was won by Borussia Dortmund in an extra-time final victory over Liverpool at Hampden Park in Glasgow. This season of the Cup Winners' Cup was the first instance of the ...
against West German team
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
. Borussia Mönchengladbach were appearing in their first European final, they had appeared in European competition but the furthest they had progressed was the second round of the
1970–71 European Cup
The 1970–71 season of the European Cup club football tournament was won by Ajax in the final against Panathinaikos. It was the first time the cup went to Ajax, beginning a three-year period of domination, and the second consecutive championshi ...
and
1971–72 European Cup
The 1971–72 season of the European Cup football club tournament was won for the second consecutive time by Ajax, who beat Internazionale in the final. Ajax qualified as the current holders of the European Cup, not as the current national league ...
when they were beat by English team
Everton and
Inter Milan
Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...
of Italy respectively.
Liverpool had won the
1972–73 Football League First Division
Statistics of Football League First Division in the 1972–73 season.
Overview
Liverpool F.C., Liverpool won the First Division title for the eighth time in the club's history that season. They made sure of the title with a 0–0 draw against Lei ...
, a 2–0 victory over
Leeds United
Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...
ensured they became champions. Their league success meant that whatever the result they would be competing in the European Cup the following season.
As a result of their league success, Liverpool were looking to become the first English team to win a European trophy in the same year as winning the league. Borussia Mönchengladbach had finished fifth in the
1972–73 Bundesliga, however they won the
1972–73 DFB-Pokal, the German domestic cup competition. This meant they would be participating in the
European Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...
in the following season.
First leg
Summary
Abandoned game
There had been heavy rain in Liverpool in the week before the first leg. Nevertheless, Austrian referee
Erich Linemayr
Erich Linemayr (24 January 1933 in Linz – 4 June 2016) was an Austrian football referee. He is known for having refereed three matches in the FIFA World Cup, two in 1974 and one in 1978. He also refereed two matches in the 1980 UEFA European F ...
decided that the first leg on 9 May would still go ahead. The rain intensified following kick-off and the players were unable to pass the ball to each other. The referee took the decision to abandon the game after 27 minutes with the match to be played the next day.
Re-arranged game
![John Toshack 2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/John_Toshack_2011.jpg)
The 27 minutes that had been played the previous day had given Liverpool manager
Bill Shankly
William Shankly (2 September 1913 – 29 September 1981) was a Scottish football player and manager, who is best known for his time as manager of Liverpool. Shankly brought success to Liverpool, gaining promotion to the First Division and winnin ...
insight into how to beat Borussia. He noted that defender
Günter Netzer
Günter Theodor Netzer (born 14 September 1944) is a German former professional football player, executive and pundit. He achieved great success in Germany with Borussia Mönchengladbach in the early 1970s and, after moving to Spain in 1973, wit ...
was suspect in the air, to exploit this he decided to omit
Brian Hall in place of
John Toshack
John Benjamin Toshack (born 22 March 1949) is a Welsh former professional football player and manager.
He began his playing career as a teenager with his hometown club Cardiff City, becoming the youngest player to make an appearance for th ...
, whom Shankly believed would exploit this weakness.
The inclusion of Toshack had the desired effect. In the 21st minute his header across the penalty area from a
Chris Lawler
Chris Lawler (born 20 October 1943) is a former footballer who enjoyed much of Liverpool's success of the mid 1960s to early 1970s.
Life and playing career
A right-sided defender, Lawler joined his local club when he turned 17 in October 196 ...
pass, set up the first goal for
Kevin Keegan
Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and ...
, who dived forward to head the ball into the far corner of the goal.
Keegan nearly extended Liverpool's lead four minutes later when they were awarded a penalty for handball.
Alec Lindsay
Alec Lindsay (born 27 February 1948) is an English former footballer who played in the Football League for Bury, Liverpool and Stoke City.
Career
Born in Bury, Lancashire, England, Lindsay played 139 matches for Bury, helping the club gain ...
put a high pass into the penalty area; Borussia defender
Rainer Bonhof, under pressure from Toshack, handled the ball and Liverpool were awarded a penalty.
However, Keegan's penalty was saved by Borussia goalkeeper
Wolfgang Kleff
Wolfgang Kleff (born 16 November 1946) is a German former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Club career
Kleff was born in Schwerte, North Rhine-Westphalia. He joined Borussia Mönchengladbach from amateur outfit VfL Schwerte, ...
who pushed the effort round the post.
Borussia nearly made Keegan pay for his penalty miss a few minutes later, but
Dietmar Danner
Dietmar Danner (born 29 November 1950) is a German former professional footballer.
Club career
Danner won three German championships and one DFB-Pokal title, as well as two UEFA Cup titles with Borussia Mönchengladbach, with whom he spent t ...
's shot hit the post.
Keegan made amends in the 33rd minute when he scored again.
Emlyn Hughes
Emlyn Walter Hughes (28 August 1947 – 9 November 2004) was an English footballer. He started his career at Blackpool in 1964 before moving to Liverpool in 1967. He made 665 appearances for Liverpool and captained the side to three league ti ...
headed the ball into the Borussia penalty area, Toshack who was facing away from the Borussia goal headed the ball back to Keegan, who volleyed the ball into the goal from ten yards to give Liverpool a 2–0 lead.
Liverpool extended their lead in the 60th minute when defender
Larry Lloyd
Laurence Valentine Lloyd (born 6 October 1948) is an English retired association football central defender and manager. He won domestic and European honours for both Bill Shankly's Liverpool and Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest in the 1970s.
...
scored. Toshack won Liverpool a corner and with Borussia defender Netzer focusing on the striker, Lloyd was left unmarked to head in Keegan's corner and extend the English club's lead to 3–0. Despite Liverpool's goals, Borussia were presented with an opportunity to get back into the tie when they were awarded a penalty in the 65th minute.
Steve Heighway
Stephen Derek Heighway (born 25 November 1947) is an Irish former footballer who was part of the hugely successful Liverpool team of the 1970s. Following his eleven-year spell at the club, he has been regarded by some as one of the greatest Li ...
's tackle on
Henning Jensen
Henning Jensen (17 August 1949 – 4 December 2017) was a Danish football player who played professionally for German club Borussia Mönchengladbach, Spanish club Real Madrid and Dutch club Ajax Amsterdam where he won the domestic league champi ...
was judged to be a foul by Austrian referee Linemayr.
Jupp Heynckes
Josef "Jupp" Heynckes (; born 9 May 1945) is a German retired professional footballer and manager. The majority of his player career was as a striker for Borussia Mönchengladbach in its golden era of the 1960s and '70s, when they won many nati ...
took the penalty for the German team hitting it to Liverpool goalkeeper
Ray Clemence
Raymond Neal Clemence, (5 August 1948 – 15 November 2020) was an England international football goalkeeper and part of the Liverpool team of the 1970s. He is one of only 31 players to have made over 1,000 career appearances, and holds the r ...
's right, but Clemence dived the right way and saved the penalty, preventing Borussia from scoring an away goal.
No further goals were scored and the referee blew for full-time with the final score 3–0 to Liverpool.
Shankly was equivocal in his praise of the players after the match stating: "It was an international-class game. Really tremendous. I am not making predictions about the second-leg, but we have a distinct advantage because we did not give away a goal." Shankly had Clemence to thank for Liverpool not conceding an away goal and the goalkeeper revealed that he had done his homework on the penalty taker Heynckes: "I watched Heynckes take a penalty in the semi-final on television and decided to dive the same way. The save was a reward for my homework."
Details
Second leg
Summary
Liverpool's 3–0 victory in the first leg meant that Borussia needed to score three goals to force the tie into extra-time. Liverpool employed a "holding action" against the "attacking Germans" in order to protect their three goal lead.
Another bout of torrential rain affected the second leg, as a result the pitch was slippery, and with the onus on Borussia to attack this caused problems for the Liverpool defence.
Knowing the task in hand Borussia bombarded Liverpool in the first half, the architect was midfielder
Günter Netzer
Günter Theodor Netzer (born 14 September 1944) is a German former professional football player, executive and pundit. He achieved great success in Germany with Borussia Mönchengladbach in the early 1970s and, after moving to Spain in 1973, wit ...
whose passing was instrumental to Borussia's play. Borussia's attacking brought their first goal in the 30th minute.
Jupp Heynckes
Josef "Jupp" Heynckes (; born 9 May 1945) is a German retired professional footballer and manager. The majority of his player career was as a striker for Borussia Mönchengladbach in its golden era of the 1960s and '70s, when they won many nati ...
who had missed the penalty for Borussia in the first leg, scored from six yards after
Bernd Rupp
Bernd Rupp (born 24 February 1942) is a German former professional footballer who played as a striker. He played his only game for West Germany on 12 October 1966, scoring a goal in a 2–0 friendly win against Turkey. He scored 119 goals in th ...
passed to him from the right hand side of the pitch.
Heynckes extended the German side's lead in the 39th minute when he curled the ball into the Liverpool goal from left of the Liverpool penalty area.
Borussia needed one more goal to level the tie and take it into extra-time. However, despite an initial spell of dominance following the start of the second half they were unable to match the intensity that they had shown in the first half, Liverpool gained confidence from this and saw out the second half, losing the match 2–0, but they won their first European trophy as a result of a 3–2 aggregate victory. Liverpool's victory meant that they became the first English team to win a European trophy and league championship in the same season.
Details
See also
*
1977 European Cup Final
The 1977 European Cup Final was an association football match between Liverpool F.C., Liverpool of England and Borussia Mönchengladbach of West Germany on 25 May 1977 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy (the venue was decided in Bern by the UE ...
– contested between same teams
*
Liverpool F.C. in European football
Liverpool Football Club is a professional association football club in Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) competitions. Since 1964, they have won fourteen European and Worldwide trophies, more than any other British club. These consi ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
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External links
1972–73 season at UEFA website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Uefa Cup Final 1973
2
Liverpool F.C. matches
Borussia Mönchengladbach matches
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...
1972–73 in German football
1972–73 in English football
May 1973 sports events in Europe
1970s in North Rhine-Westphalia
1970s in Liverpool
Sports competitions in North Rhine-Westphalia
International sports competitions in Liverpool
20th century in Mönchengladbach