Munich, 26 May 1993. It’s a glory day for Olympique Marseille. The French squad faces the Milan of Paolo Maldini, Franco Baresi, Frank Rijkaard, Marco van Basten and… their former teammate Jean-Pierre Papin.
Silvio Berlusconi, after the match: “I don’t accept the defeat, but I admit it. Milan is the dark beast of Italian teams, but OM is the dark beast of Milan.”
The 44th minute. Basile Boli strikes a header from a corner obtained and kicked by Abedi Pelé. The ball is in, Olympique de Marseille is in paradise, and the whole France shivers.
Fabien Barthez is in charge during the second half. He faces three one-on-one encounters with Van Basten and Massaro. The French goalie wins them all, like a champ on big matches.
It’s 22h10 at the Stadio Olimpico di Roma when Didier Deschamps waves the “big ear cup”, a name patented by Bernard Tapie.
Raymond Goethals, Olympique Marseille’s coach with Belgian origins, glorifies himself: “Who played four times with Milan in the last two years and never lost, received only one goal, a goal offered for them?” And then, he lights a cigarette.
Marseille and AC Milan formations for the final
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