Champions League: The English Teams to Have Reached the European Cup Final & How They Fared

09 May 2019 03:35

Following a remarkable 48 hours of football, Liverpool and Tottenham will battle it out in the Champions League final in Madrid on June 3.

Next month's all-English clash will be ​Liverpool's ninth final in the competition's history, as they look to claim the trophy for the sixth time.

Meanwhile, ​Tottenham are preparing to go as far as they've ever gone before, becoming the eighth English club to reach the European Cup final - the most of any nation.

Here's a look at how English clubs have fared over the years in their respective finals.


Arsenal

Arsenal's French forward and team captai

​Arsenal have only reached the final on one occasion, where they met ​Barcelona at the Stade de France in Paris in 2006. The Gunners led at half-time through a Sol Campbell header, despite keeper Jens Lehmann's sending off after 18 minutes.

Samuel Eto'o wrestled the game back for Barça with 15 minutes to go, before Juliano Belletti became the unlikely hero for La Blaugrana, squeezing the ball through Manuel Almunia from a tight angle in the 80th minute. 


Aston Villa

Gordon Cowans

​Aston Villa made it to the final back in 1981/82, facing ​Bayern Munich in Rotterdam. Like Arsenal, Villa also lost their goalkeeper in the opening stages of the match - albeit through injury - but the substitute goalkeeper Nigel Spink became the hero as he kept Bayern at bay.

The Villans clinched the victory in the 67th minute through striker Peter Withe, as they won their first and - so far - only European Cup.


Chelsea

Chelsea's English defender John Terry (C

​Chelsea first reached the Champions League final in 2008, where the Blues met ​Manchester United in Moscow for the first all-English final in the competition's history. United dominated the first half hour, with ​Cristiano Ronaldo opening the scoring before Frank Lampard levelled at the end of the first half. 

During extra time, Didier Drogba was sent off for slapping Nemanja Vidic and the match went to penalties. John Terry had a chance to win it but infamously slipped at the vital moment, before Nicolas Anelka missed the decisive spot-kick to give United the trophy.

Chelsea's Ivorian forward Didier Drogba

Fast forward four years and Didier Drogba avenged his red card in the most incredible way possible. Chelsea took on Bayern Munich in their own backyard in 2012, trailed 1-0 with three minutes remaining, before the Ivorian headed in a dramatic equaliser. 

But Drogba's night was far from over. He conceded a penalty in extra time - ​Petr Cech saved from former Blue Arjen Robben - and in the penalty shootout, Drogba sent ​Manuel Neuer the wrong way to finally put Chelsea's name on the trophy for the first time in their history.


Leeds United

Peter Lorimer

In 1975, ​Leeds United faced Bayern Munich at the Parc des Princes in Paris in a match that resulted in the Whites being banned from the competition for the following two years.

Leeds were denied two strong penalty claims after fouls by legendary defender Franz Beckenbauer, who also had a hand in disallowing a United goal at 0-0. Leeds had the ball in the net but under Beckenbauer's instruction, the referee consulted his official - who had not raised his flag - and ruled out Leeds' opener. 

Bayern went on to score two goals in the final 20 minutes and the ensuing riots from Leeds fans had the club suspended from the European Cup.


Liverpool

Liverpool's captain Steven Gerrard holds

The Reds lifted the big eared-trophy twice in succession in 1977 and 1978, beating Borussia Monchengladbach and Club Brugge in the finals. Three years later, Liverpool continued their 100% record in European Cup finals and defeated ​Real Madrid 1-0 in Paris. 

Their fourth triumph came in Rome in 1984, beating Roma on penalties. The Reds reached the final once more the following season, losing 1-0 to ​Juventus, though the final will always be remembered for the tragic Heysel Stadium disaster before the match.

In 2005, Liverpool reached the final for the first time in 20 years and who could forget that night? The infamous second-half comeback against ​AC Milan in Istanbul, before beating the Italians on penalties, will go down as the one of the greatest nights in the club's history, as the Reds won their fifth European Cup.

Loris Karius

The 2006/07 final saw a repeat of the 2005 pairing, though it was a much more straight-forward evening in Athens for Milan, avenging the previous meeting with a 2-1 win. Liverpool had to wait 11 years to reach the final again, losing 3-1 to Real Madrid last season in the ​Gareth Bale/Loris Karius final.


Manchester United

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

Back in 1968, Manchester United became the first ever English side to reach the European Cup final - the Red Devils defeated Benfica 4-1 during extra time at Wembley Stadium.

United didn't reach the final again until 1999, when they met Bayern Munich at the Camp Nou for an all-time classic. The Germans took an early lead and looked set to see the game out, before Teddy Sheringham and a certain Ole Gunnar Solskjaer turned the game on its head with two goals in injury time. 

Manchester United team celebrate the tro

Sir Alex Ferguson then guided the club to two successive finals - United defeated Chelsea in 2008 but fell to a 2-0 defeat to Barcelona in Rome a year later.

United's last appearance in a Champions League final was in 2011 at Wembley - against Barcelona once more - where the Catalan giants triumphed 3-1 in London.


Nottingham Forest

Trevor Francis

During the late 1970s, ​Forest appeared in two European Cup finals - two in two years, in fact - and proudly hold a 100% record. Under the guidance of Brian Clough, their first trophy was won in Munich, where they beat Swedish side Malmo 1-0 thanks to a Trevor Francis goal.

Forest repeated the feat and scoreline the following season against Hamburg at the Santiago Bernabeu, becoming the first club to win more European Cups than their own domestic division. 


Source: 90min