Celtic in the Eighties – Celtic v Juventus, European Cup, September 1981 | OneFootball

EARLY EIGHTIES CLASSICS – CELTIC v JUVENTUS…

After the heroics against Real Madrid in the European Cup Quarter Final in March 1980, hopes were high that Billy McNeill’s exciting young team would go on to enjoy further success in future European competition. These hopes were dashed during the club’s next foray in Europe in 1980/81, when Celtic found themselves in the European Cup Winners Cup.

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Celtic played Diosgyoeri Miskolc of Hungary in the Qualifying Round and won 6-1 on aggregate. The tie was effectively won in the first leg at Celtic Park, when an excellent attacking performance in the second half produced six goals.

In the First-Round proper against Politechnica Timosoara of Romania, a similar scoreline looked on the cards at Celtic Park as Celtic raced to a two-goal lead by half-time. However, a poor second half performance allowed Politechnica to grab a crucial away goal. Two weeks later, on 1 October 1980, a 0-1 defeat in Romania ended Celtic’s European football for the season.

The game in Romania was notable because both Roddy McDonald and Frank McGavey were sent off, and because of the incredibly biased refereeing in favour of the home side. Regardless of these factors, Celtic were eliminated on away goals in a tie which should never have been in doubt. European football was over the beginning of October.

Dundee United 2-3 Celtic, 22 April 1981. Celtic celebrate the title win. Photo The Celtic Wiki

In 1980/81, Celtic ended up winning the League comfortably, finishing seven points clear of Aberdeen. They also set new records for points won (56), most wins (26) and most goals scored (84). All this was achieved after an inconsistent first half of the season which, by the end of 1980, left them three points behind Aberdeen, who also had a game in hand. The change in the early months of 1981 was quite remarkable, with Celtic achieving a high level of consistency and stringing together win after win. The season also saw the emergence of a certain Charlie Nicholas, who scored several memorable goals and impressed fans with his all-round play.

In the First Round of the European Cup, Celtic were drawn against Juventus

In the First Round of the European Cup, Celtic were drawn against Juventus. Feelings were mixed. There was huge excitement at the prospect of another match against one of the giants of European football in front of a packed Celtic Park. However, there was also an air of realism about how difficult it would be to eliminate a Juventus side containing six stars from the previous World Cup. Allied to this was the fear that an early exit from Europe was the most likely outcome.

Celtic v Juventus, European Cup First Round , Celtic Park. 16 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

Additional glamour was provided by the presence of Irishman Liam Brady

Additional glamour was provided by the presence of Irishman Liam Brady in the Juventus side. He had joined Juventus from Arsenal in the close season of 1980 and had already helped the Italian side win the Scudetto in his first season in Turin. Brady was unquestionably one of the finest midfield players of his generation. The Irish dimension was also intriguing, with Brady himself and his Dublin family assumed to be Celtic supporters. Indeed, Brady arranged for a coach load of family members to travel to Glasgow for the first leg.

Celtic v Juventus, European Cup First Round , Celtic Park. 16 September 1981. Photo The Celtic WikiCeltic’s Tommy Burns (right) is challenged by Marco Tardelli

Celtic responded superbly to the frenzied backing received from the crowd

The match was all-ticket, and just over 60000 watched an enthralling match on 16 September 1981. As usual, Celtic responded superbly to the frenzied backing received from the crowd and charged forward, setting the pace during the first half hour. As Alex Cameron put it in the Daily Record the next day: “The Celts hurled themselves at the all-blue Juventus with a fury which clearly took them by surprise”.

Celtic v Juventus, European Cup First Round , Celtic Park. 16 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

The Italians were masters at ‘game management’

However, the Italians were masters at what would now be described as ‘game management’. Celtic’s attacking moves were choked by Juve’s predictable defensive tactics. They were quite happy to soak up pressure and hit quickly on the break. They came more into things as the first half progressed, with Brady at the centre of everything. Tommy Burns played a similar role for Celtic, and both he and Brady were the stars of the match. Burns was involved in a couple of chances in the first half, making both crosses to Tom McAdam which were headed over.

Celtic v Juventus, European Cup First Round , Celtic Park. 16 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

Celtic Park erupted, with scenes of jubilation all around the stadium

Despite Celtic’s exuberance and energy, clear-cut chances were limited by Juve’s composure in defence. The single goal came in the 65th minute. A corner from Davie Provan was cleared as far as Roy Aitken. His shot rebounded out to Murdo MacLeod, whose fierce low shot was deflected past Dino Zoff. Celtic Park erupted, with scenes of jubilation all around the stadium.

Celtic v Juventus, European Cup First Round , Celtic Park. 16 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

However, Celtic could not fashion another clear-cut opportunity in the remainder of the match and had to be careful not to concede. The closest Celtic came to a second goal was when they had claims for a penalty dismissed by the referee near the end of the match. George McCluskey appeared to have been bundled from behind by Brio inside the penalty area, but play was waved on.

Celtic v Juventus, European Cup First Round , Celtic Park. 16 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

Celtic had an advantage – albeit slender – to take to Turin

The first leg ended 1-0 to Celtic. Most fans and media observers recognised this as a very good result against a top-class side. Celtic had an advantage – albeit slender – to take to Turin and had also avoided conceding an away goal. However, no one was under any illusions about the scale of the task which remained in the second leg, with many feeling that Juventus were still favourites to go through.

Celtic’s display had been commendable, but had been characterised by energy and determination rather than by any real creativity. As Mike Aitken summed it up in The Scotsman: “Tenacity and sheer grit helped Celtic manufacture the most fragile of leads at Parkhead to take to Turin in a fortnight’s time”.

Read about the second leg in Turin on the next page…

The Second Leg in Turin

Celtic manager Billy McNeill. Juventus v Celtic, European Cup, first round, second leg, 30 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

Celtic were without Danny McGrain in the second leg and, as it turned out, they would badly miss his experience and leadership…

Roy Aitken captains the side. Juventus v Celtic, European Cup, first round, second leg, 30 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

As expected, Juventus came at Celtic right from the start. Brady was again outstanding, constantly feeding probing passes Roberto Bettega, Pietro Virdis and Domenico Marocchino. Juve were also assisted by a supportive Belgian referee who was quick to punish Celtic tackles but ignore those of the home side. Despite this onslaught, Celtic absorbed the pressure calmly and kept their composure. There were signs of frustration appearing among the Juventus players and support.

Juventus v Celtic, European Cup, first round, second leg, 30 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

Then, after 28 minutes, Roy Aitken took a long free kick which went straight to Gentile. He passed to Virdis, who set off on a 60 yard run before firing a shot past Bonner. This was exactly the boost which Juventus needed and was to prove the turning point of the tie. In the 40th minute, Celtic failed to clear their lines properly. A cross came to Bettega, who killed the ball on his knee and then swivelled to fire an unstoppable volley past Bonner.

The travelling Celtic support. Juventus v Celtic, European Cup, first round, second leg, 30 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

An away goal would still have put Celtic through, but Juve used all their experience and nous to maintain their lead and see out the rest of the game. Although Celtic battled very bravely, Juventus still created all the clear-cut chances, and the scoreline would have been much worse but for Pat Bonner’s heroics in goal. He was universally acclaimed as Celtic’s best player on the night.

Celtic were out of Europe again but, as Billy McNeill said, “We can’t complain because Juventus were a better side. Things went well until we lost a goal – but this sort of match lets you see the standard we have to aim at in both quality and desire to win.”

Juventus v Celtic, European Cup, first round, second leg, 30 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

This was a common theme in the after-match reports, with the comparison always being made between Celtic’s naivete and Juve’s know-how. As Mike Aitken put it in The Scotsman: “Celtic were dismissed from the Champions’ Cup in Turin last night by the seasoned professionals of Juventus, who were as masters showing pupils the art of European football.”

Juventus v Celtic, European Cup, first round, second leg, 30 September 1981. Photo The Celtic Wiki

The Celtic fans who had made the long trip to Turin were fully appreciative of the team’s efforts, staying on in the stadium for a full 15 minutes after the game to show their support. The vast majority had travelled by bus, and sadly a nasty shock awaited many of them in the stadium car park. In a completely unprovoked attack, Celtic supporters waiting to board their buses were set upon by gangs of Italian youths, many wielding knives and razors.

Some Celtic fans suffered terrible injuries. Three Scots ended up in hospital with severe knife wounds, with one requiring two hours of surgery. The windows of several supporters’ buses were also smashed in random attacks. The sickening violence received remarkably little coverage from a media all too quick to provide saturation coverage of any instances of misbehaviour by Scottish or English fans.

After the excitement of the two matches, Celtic’s participation in Europe was yet again over by the end of September. McNeill’s young players had battled bravely against superior opposition and given a good account of themselves. Unfortunately, they had fallen just short. Perhaps they could go further next year…

James McDevitt

Where you are one or both of these matches against Juventus in the European Cup in September 1981? If so we’d love to hear from you. Please post your memories of these games in the comments section below. Also if anyone has photos from these games, especially the away match, it would be great to drop them in the article. Send to editor@thecelticstar.co.uk and we’ll drop the photos in with appropriate credits.

Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter is out now!

If you are thinking about ordering a copy of David Potter’s final Celtic book, Celtic in the Eighties, which is out now on Celtic Star Books, then you’ll need to be quick. We’ve had a remarkable response so far and have just over 100 books remaining. When they’re gone, they’re gone…

Celtic in the Eighties – Out now, it’s our fastest selling book ever and accordingly stocks are now very low indeed, so get it while you can!…

Celtic in the Eighties by the late, great David Potter is out now on Celtic Star Books. Celtic in the Eighties is now available in the Celtic superstore and all other club shops. And don’t forget that you can still purchase your copy directly from Celticstarbooks.com for same day postage.

Order Celtic in the Eighties today, you’ll be glad you did, it’s a fabulous read!

OUT NOW! Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter. Foreword by Danny McGrain. Published on Celtic Star Books. Click on image to order.

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