Lisbon Lion Chalmers recalls Celtic's glory night

UEFA.com recalls how the Hoops upset the form book to defeat Italian team Internazionale Milano in the 1967 European Champion Clubs' Cup final.

The Bhoys were unfancied when taking on the might of Inter in Lisbon nearly 50 years ago at the conclusion to their first appearance in the competition.

Winners of two of the tournament's previous three editions and victorious against holders Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, the Nerrazzurri were on course to be crowned kings of Europe again when Sandro Mazzola converted an early penalty. With Helenio Herrera's outfit famed for their catenaccio style of play and knack of registering marginal victories, the outlook was gloomy for Jock Stein's men.

However, a Celtic side featuring ten Glasgow-born players were never cowed and levelled after the hour through Tommy Gemmell. "They probably underestimated [us] – I think they did, they were shocked," said their centre-forward Steve Chalmers, who would go on to etch his name into Scottish football history.

"They were delighted with the penalty they got. They seemed to want to sit on it and our team wouldn't have wanted another game – they wanted to get on and win it."

Win it they did through Chalmers' subsequent strike with six minutes remaining, prompting euphoric scenes on and off the Nacional de Jamor stadium pitch. "I kept thinking [about] all the supporters that were there," added Chalmers, now 76. "We had people there that couldn't afford to come to Lisbon, but they were there. So many of them were delighted to get into the team and celebrate with them." And so the Lisbon Lions were born.

To hear more from Chalmers about the greatest night in Celtic's history, watch the video above.