Recently in Bucharest, at a special event, former Steaua players celebrated the 38th anniversary of the team’s victory in the UEFA Super Cup of 1986 with fans.
UEFA Super Cup of 1986. Steaua — Dynamo — 1:0It is worth recalling that in that one-match tournament, the Bucharest team, as the holder of the Champions Cup, faced Kyiv’s Dynamo, which was the reigning Cup Winners' Cup holder at the time, and won with a minimal score of 1:0 (the only goal was scored from a free kick by Gheorghe Hagi). The match took place on February 24, 1987, in Monaco.
Here is what former Steaua players remembered about that encounter with Dynamo.
Stefan Ioan, former Steaua defender: “We knew that at that time Kyiv's ‘Dynamo’ had very valuable players. Neither then nor now could it be said that this final was an easy match. But we managed to win. We were a pragmatic team, the best team in the history of Romanian football. It will be very difficult for anyone to compare with us in terms of effectiveness.”
Adrian Bumbescu, former Steaua defender: “It was a very, very difficult match. Especially for us, the defenders, we had the main burden to bear at that time, as Kyiv’s ‘Dynamo’ was essentially the backbone of the USSR national team. It is disappointing that over time, this outstanding success of our team has not been given due recognition.”
Tudorel Stoica, former Steaua midfielder: “We won the Super Cup of Europe against a team that at that time hardly had anyone missing from the USSR national team. So it was an extraordinary performance. Unfortunately, there are no prospects for such a thing to be repeated in Romanian football. And that’s objectively speaking.”
The decisive goal by Gheorghe Hagi against Dynamo in the UEFA Super Cup of 1986:
