Napoli vs Real Madrid, you say? Once they collided, the Champions League was born
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Reading Time: 3min | Tue. 03.10.23. | 14:24
They met in the 1987-88 European Champions Cup. That tie was a milestone in the history of football and created the world we live in today
The clash between Napoli and Real Madrid at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples on Tuesday night will be much more than a genuine UCL tie.
Not just because of the fact the Serie A champion face the UCL holders.
Not just because Los Blancos' gaffer Carlo Ancelotti used to sit in the Partenopei's dugout.
Not just because we'll enjoy seeing Osimhen, Bellingham, Camavinga, Tchouameni, Khvicha and other stars at the same time on the pitch.
It's history that counts also, and in case of these two - the very foundation of the Champions League is closely attached to the battle between the Blues and the Whites.
In September 1987 they met in the extint European Champions Cup, the predecessor of the legendary UCL, which would be founded half a decade later. But the idea of it was born on those two nights, 36 years ago.
Napoli and Real Madrid faced off in the Round of 32, in a bad-tempered two-leg tie, which ended in Los Merengues' triumph 3-1 on aggregate. Nervous Diego Maradona failed to push his team over the mighty Madrid, and the Italian champions were out of the ellite competition after just two games.
Napoli v Real Madrid 1987
— 80s&90sFootball ⚽ 🏴 🇺🇦 (@80s90sfootball) February 1, 2022
Careca kicks Real Madrid goalkeeper Buyo, who faĺls to the floor. Andrea Carnevale thinks one kick clearly wasn't enough and blatantly kicks Buyo on floor 5 seconds later a earns himself a red card
'Talk about putting the boot in' pic.twitter.com/nqkc9bdftm
Witnessing such a disappointing outcome from the stands, then-AC Milan owner and president, capricious tycoon Silvio Berlusconi concluded it's about time things change. For good. Massively.
"The imponderable prevails in European competitions," Berlusconi told Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera. "We must turn them into a continental league, with guarantees for the clubs in terms of management and revenues."
As he saw it:
"We'd always go play in Madrid, Barcelona and Lisbon, not some remote provincial village. Clubs of a certain level that draw big crowds and have revenues to match should compete with each other. An 18-team Serie A is also against the interests of football. What mentality does a provincial side come to San Siro with? The most they can hope for is to play for a 0-0," concluded Don Silvio.
And his wishes soon turned into a reality.
The UEFA Champions League was created, those 'provincial villages' were thrown out of the ellite competition, and the prize money began increasing year by year. We sincerely hope some new Berlusconi won't attend the game tonight and draw conclusions that would change UEFA's flagship competition again.
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 2
Tuesday
19:45: (1.85) Union Berlin (3.60) Braga (4.80)
19:45: (2.85) Salzburg (3.35) Sociedad (2.65)
22:00: (15.0) Copenhagen (6.75) Bayern (1.23)
22:00: (1.50) Man.Utd. (4.50) Galatasaray (7.25)
22:00: (6.00) Lens (4.00) Arsenal (1.65)
22:00: (2.00) PSV (3.60) Sevilla (4.10)
22:00: (2.60) Napoli (3.50) Real Madrid (2.85)
22:00: (1.83) Inter (3.70) Benfica (4.80)
Wednesday
19:45: (1.63) Atl.Madrid (4.00) Feyenoord (6.25)
19:45: (1.90) Antwerp (3.70) Shakhtar (4.40)
22:00: (3.00) Celtic (3.50) Lazio (2.45)
22:00: (2.40) Dortmund (3.50) Milan (3.05)
22:00: (2.50) Newcastle (3.60) PSG (2.90)
22:00: (2.20) Crvena Zvezda (3.50) Young Boys (3.45)
22:00: (5.40) RB Leipzig (4.10) Man.City (1.67)
22:00: (4.20) Porto (3.60) Barcelona (1.95)
***odds are subject to change***
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