1983/84: Star-studded Juventus make their mark

Juventus FC 2-1 FC Porto
St-Jakob Stadium, Basle

The Juventus FC line-up against FC Porto in the 1984 final speaks for itself. Stefano Tacconi; Gaetano Scirea; Claudio Gentile, Sergio Brio, Antonio Cabrini; Marco Tardelli, Massimo Bonini, Beniamino Vignola; Michel Patini; Zbigniew Boniek, Paolo Rossi.

Juventus made to work
But, after beating KS Lechia Gdansk 10-2 in the first round, they were made to sweat for success. Paris Saint-Germain FC made them invoke the away-goals rule (0-0 and 2-2). Even though the ‘away’ leg was played in Strasbourg, the Finns of FC Haka held them to a pair of 1-0 victories. Against Manchester United FC in the semi-finals, they drew 1-1 in England and won 2-1 in Turin thanks to Boniek and Rossi. FC Porto, emerging as a European force under Artur Jorge, also fought their way through difficult ties against NK Dinamo Zagreb, Rangers FC and Shakhtyor Donetsk before beating the defending champions, Aberdeen FC, 2-0 on aggregate to reach a final where Juventus started as red-hot favourites.

Goals confined to first half
The final in Basle was decided in the first half. Both teams showed attacking potential but Vignola put Juventus ahead after 13 minutes. Porto rallied bly and Antonio Sousa equalised on the half-hour. The game ebbed and flowed but Juventus earned the crucial break four minutes before half-time when Boniek exploited a gap in the Portuguese defence to make it 2-1. In the second half, Porto valiantly sought a route through the Italian defence which was superbly marshalled by Scirea, tragically killed in a car crash a few years later.