Juve Classic 1999 : Juventus 2 vs Man Utd 3
United’s come-from-behind victory in Turin remains arguably the Reds’ finest ever European away performance, possibly even the best by a British team on foreign soil.Ryan Giggs’ last-gasp equaliser at Old Trafford a fortnight earlier had ensured a 1-1 aggregate parity going into the second leg in the Stadio Delle Alpi. Against a side bidding to reach a fourth straight Champions League final, the last thing the Reds needed was to concede early - so to do it twice constituted a major problem.
Filippo Inzaghi was on hand to tap in when Zinedine Zidane caught the visitors cold with a quickly-taken corner, and fortune seemingly favoured the Bianconeri when Inzaghi struck again five minutes later, looping an effort over Peter Schmeichel via a huge deflection off Jaap Stam.
Two down inside 11 minutes and requiring at least two goals against the masters of pragmatic football, United would have appeared dead and buried in the eyes of many. The atmosphere among the travelling Reds contingent was one of an unlikely calm, however, which was in keeping with the cool exuding from those on the field.
United had actually called the tune in terms of possession, and looked well on top aside from Inzaghi’s double strike. Roy Keane was pulling all the strings in midfield, hassling Zidane and Edgar Davids into submission, and after 24 minutes he glanced home the all-important goal which halved the arrears and set the home nerves jangling.
From then on, there was only one winner. Just after the half-hour mark, Gary Neville pumped the ball forward for Beckham, who nodded down for Cole. He took a touch and clipped in a perfect cross for Yorke, whose diving header silenced the entire stadium, bar the writhing, jubilant United contingent to the right of the goal.
Moments later, Yorke smashed a low effort against the post as United’s tide of pressure threatened to engulf the staggering Old Lady. Half-time came at the wrong time for United, who had to withstand a little more pressure after the interval. Inzaghi had a hat-trick goal chalked off, having been way offside, before Denis Irwin struck a low shot against the inside of Peruzzi’s post.
In true, 1999 vintage style, the Reds kept pushing for a killer goal and it duly came six minutes from full-time. It was hardly the prettiest - Schmeichel’s long punt, Ferrara’s poor clearance, Yorke’s dribble through two defenders, Peruzzi’s shameless haul down, Cole’s rebound tap-in - but the goal sent United fans, players and staff wild.
At the final whistle, United’s players were applauded off the field by Juventus fans, an act of generosity rarely lavished on any team. Having shown the guts, guile and mental fortitude to overcome Juve on their own patch, United were absolutely worthy recipients.
Champions League Semi-Final
21 April, 1999, Stadio Delle Alpi
JUVENTUS 2
Inzaghi (6, 10)
MANCHESTER UNITED 3
Keane (24), Yorke (34), Cole (84)