1990 European Cup final: no breaking of the Guttmann curse as Eriksson’s Benfica are denied by Sacchi’s AC Milan | OneFootball

Benfica visit AC Milan at San Siro on Wednesday to open their Europa League campaign, a reminder of Vienna 1990 when Arrigo Sacchi’s side denied Sven-Göran Eriksson’s Benfica and the Béla Guttmann curse endured.

According to Portugoal, Eusébio visited Guttmann’s grave that morning, then watched a tight, tactical final in which Benfica matched Milan for long spells before being undone late on.

Benfica’s run had brought heavy wins over Derry City, Honved and Dniepr, then a stormy semi-final against Olympique Marseille, settled when Vata diverted a cross in with his hand. The incident was later rumoured to have influenced Bernard Tapie, who was subsequently convicted of attempting to bribe a referee before a Champions League final years later.

Milan had seen off HJK, then Real Madrid, their offside trap to the fore, before eliminating KV Mechelen and Bayern Munich, the latter thanks to Stefano Borgonovo in extra time.

In Vienna, Ruud Gullit and Marco van Basten were largely subdued, yet just after the hour Frank Rijkaard strode through midfield and beat Silvino for the goal. Eriksson turned to César Brito and then Vata from the bench, but Milan closed it out.

It remains Benfica’s last European Cup final. They have not progressed beyond the last eight since, though they reached two Europa League finals in the 2010s.

Milan’s European pedigree only grew, with further triumphs under Fabio Capello and Carlo Ancelotti. That night, however, offered a meagre spectacle between two giants at the cusp of a changing era.

Source: Portugoal

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”