For this episode, we interview the Belgium National Team’s Media
and Press Officer and Author Mr. Stefan Van Loock@stefan_vanloock as we discuss
the matches of the Belgium National Team during the 1982 World Cup.
In
addition to his role as the Belgium’s Men and Women’s Media and Press Officer, Mr. Van Loock
has authored books on Football history, such as:
Vergeten Arena’s (1996),
Forgotten arena’s on old footballgrounds.
Voetbaltempels van de Lage
Landen vroeger en nu (1999), on the football stadia, then & now for Euro
2000
De Goden van Genk, on iconic
players of Winterslag en Waterschei, two clubs merging into KRV Genk
Mister Michel, de zilveren
vos van Anderlecht (biography of former Anderlecht director Michel Verschueren)
100 jaar RSCA (2008), on
hundred years of Royal Sporting Club
Anderlecht
Het EK, Van Panenka tot
Kompany (2016, co-author François Colin) on the history of the Euros
Terug naar Montevideo (2018,
in het spoor van John Langenus en de Rode duivels naar het eerste WK in 1930).
Return to Montevideo, in the wake of John Langenus and the Belgian Red Devils
to the first World Cup in 1930
1895, 125 jaar ontroerend
erfgoed (2019, jubileumboek 125 jaar KBVB in samenwerking met fotograaf
www.filipvanloock.be)
1895, 125 years of emotional
heritage (2020, jubilee book on 125th anniversary of the Belgian FA, English
version, photos by www.filipvanloock.be)
Mr. Van Loock has also worked
as a Television commentator for the 1990, 1994, 2006 World Cup and Champions
League matches.
For any questions/comments,
you may contact us:
You may also contact me on
this blog, on twitter @sp1873 and on facebook under Soccernostalgia.
World Cup
Stories; https://www.facebook.com/groups/949738315563259
Soccernostalgia Question: When Juventus
started the 1983/84 season, they had been defeated in the previous season’s
Champions Cup Final vs. SV Hamburg and finished second in the Serie A behind AS
Roma. What were the expectations going into the Cup Winners Cup?
Mr. Deodato Response: The expectations were high. First of all because all
important players remained in Turin. And then because the feeling about Athens
was that Juventus missed the great opportunity to win their first European Cup.
The dream had been quickly destroyed by the shot made by Magath and for the
rest of the game it was clear: Juventus is not the usual Juventus. Because of
this, even though Athens had been a bad moment for Juventus fans, there was a
renewed trust on Juventus, hoping to see them taking a revenge somehow in
Europe.
Soccernostalgia Question: The major
transfers in the off-season had been the arrivals of Goalkeeper Stefano Tacconi
(from Avellino), Nicola Caricola (from Bari) in defense, Roberto Tavola (from
Lazio, back from loan) and Beniamino Vignola (from Avellino) in midfield and Domenico
Penzo (from Verona) upfront. The departures included the retirement of Dino
Zoff and the loss of Roberto Bettega to the NASL. In hindsight were any of the
arrival critical in the European matches that season (besides Vignola that is)?
Mr. Deodato Response: The arrival of Stefano Tacconi was important but
could still caused some uncertainties. The question in those days was: how can
Juventus ever succeed in substituting the legendary Dino Zoff? It seemed
impossible. For months Juventus had contacted the best young goalkeepers and
the one who was very close to join Juventus was Ascoli goalkeeper Fabio Brini.
He stopped penalty kicks against the best teams and many journalists and
experts saw him as the "new Zoff". As Juventus contacted Ascoli, Ascoli
president Costantino Rozzi asked for a high amount as he also considered Brini
the new Zoff. So Juventus opted for Tacconi instead who also had played a good
season. At the end, Brini moved to Udinese and played with Zico while Tacconi
became the new Juventus goalkeeper for years winning everything possible. Pity
that he never had space with the National team and pity also that Brini has not
had the chance to join Juventus. Udinese was a wonderful team with Zico but
Juventus played for years at the top level and competitions. Caricola was a
good choice, Tavola did not have lot of space while Penzo was expected to be
the new unstoppable scorer because of his stats and performances with Verona.
He had a great start with 4 goals in a match with Lechia but the problem was
that Juventus had Rossi, Platini and Boniek upfront. With Vignola there was
more balance and fantasy.
Soccernostalgia Question: The first
round turned out to be very easy with Juventus comfortable winners over Polish
side Lechia Gdansk? The main talking point was Boniek playing against his
compatriots. What do you remember from these matches?
Mr. Deodato Response: Before the first leg, Boniek said: "We must win
but without piling it on, it will be difficult for Lechia players to play in
front of 70.000 people". And they won 7-0. In the second leg in Poland,
the fans in Gdansk booed Boniek for 90 minutes and he answered scoring the
winning goal at minute 83 (Lechia - Juventus 2-3). Walesa was at the stadium
and all fans stood up and screamed "Solidarnosc". Walesa thanked the
fans by taking a bow. Overall I have the memory of an unstoppable Juventus in
Serie A and in the Cup Winners Cup.
Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, Issue 38 (456), September
21-27, 1983
(September 14, 1983, Cup Winners Cup, Juventus 7-Lechia Gdansk 0)
Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, Issue 40 (458), October 5-11,
1983
(September 28, 1983, Cup Winners Cup, Lechia Gdansk 2-Juventus 3)
Soccernostalgia Question: The
second-round tie vs. French side Paris St Germain was a bit trickier. There
surely would have been some talk about Platini this time playing against his
compatriots. Juventus did well away from home and were almost winning before
PSG struck in the last minute. Despite this, a (2-2) away tie was very
beneficial to Juventus. For the away leg in typical Trapattoni fashion,
Juventus maintained a scoreless tie to advance on away-goals rule? What was the
general view of Juventus’ performance?
Mr. Deodato Response: Juventus had to face Paris Saint-Germain, the team
which wanted to sign Platini in the previous seasons. Juventus was very close
to win in Paris but for an Italian team the draw with two goals on the road had
always considered (and it really was) a good result. Boniperti had the opinion
that Platini had been influenced by the boos he received and Platini confirmed
that it was true. Le Roi Michel also added that Susic had mad too many fouls
and that Gentile and Caricola will remember it for the second leg.
In Turin Juventus could qualify with a 0-0 draw with Paris Saint-Germain
constantly attacking at the end of the match. It was a very good result as
Juventus came from two defeats in a row in Serie A in the derby with Torino and
against Sampdoria.
Photo From: France Football, Issue 1959, October 25, 1983
(October 19, 1983, Cup Winners Cup, Paris St Germain 2-Juventus 2)
Photo From: France Football, Issue 1961, November 8, 1983
(November 2, 1983, Cup Winners Cup, Juventus 0-Paris St Germain
0)
Soccernostalgia Question: Juventus
entered the Springtime Quarterfinals as Serie A Leadesr with Platini on fire
having won the Ballon d’Or at the end of 1983. On paper, their opponents, the
Finnish side of Haka Valkeakoski seemed vastly inferior. Yet, Juventus seemed
to struggle breaking down their defense and ‘only’ won (1-0) home and away. What
do you remember from these matches?
Mr. Deodato Response: The general expectation was to see Juventus winning
by 4 or 5 in each game as nobody had ever heard of Haka. In Finland Juventus
had many chances to score but the winning goal came in the last minute and was
scored by Beniamino Vignola. Platini did not play a good match and a signal
came in the previous days as he travelled to France and gave signs of being
nervous. The match was played in Strasbourg and Platini had awaited a better
welcome from the French fans. Moreover, France Football had written a tough
article on Platini accusing him of being too much linked to his ancestral
Italian origins and that for the European Cup, he will need to get rid of the
Italian clothes. In the second leg Juventus won only by 1 with a goal scored by
Tardelli and fans whistled Juventus. Platini was injured and did not play.
Trapattoni said to the journalists: "The players are offended. What do
fans expected?". True, 1-0 was not the expected results for the fans. But
Juventus had lost in Verona some days before and could keep only 2 points
advantage on Roma. This might have influenced the game with Haka.
Photo From: France Football, Issue 1979, March 13, 1984
(March 7, 1984, Cup Winners Cup, Haka Valkeakoski 0-Juventus 1)
Soccernostalgia Question: It was at the
Semifinals stage that Juventus came across a strong opponent in Manchester
United. The first leg Juventus did well to come away with a tie (1-1), but
nothing was decided yet. In the second leg, Paolo Rossi scored Juventus’ winner
in the end for a (2-1) win Was this Juventus’ best performance in Europe that
season?
Mr. Deodato Response: The game in Manchester was played some days before
the clash Roma - Juventus with Juventus 3 points ahead of Roma. Juventus knew
that they had to obtain a good result in England and also be ready for Roma.
Before the match Manchester accused Juventus to have paid the referee.
Boniperti: "Manchester fans are upset because they fear that we will sign
Robson? They should not be worried, they can keep him". The game was tough
and Robson did not play but Juventus could get a 1-1 draw. The second leg in
Turin was also 1-1 until some minute before the end when Rossi scored a great
goal. The newspapers wrote: "A great goal, in Paolo Rossi's style".
Rating for Paolo Rossi: 7.5.
Photo From: France Football, Issue 1984, April 17, 1984
(April 11, 1984, Cup Winners Cup, Manchester United 1-Juventus
1)
Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, Issue 18 (488), May 2-8, 1984
(April 25, 1984, Cup
Winners Cup, Juventus 2- Manchester United 1)
Soccernostalgia Question: The Final vs.
Porto was somewhat unspectacular in retrospect. In Trapattoni fashion, Juventus
just did enough to win (2-1). How do you regard the Final?
Mr. Deodato Response: I have other memories in mind. I remember the stadium
plenty of Juventus fans in Basel. A bianconeri wall all around, Juventus taking
the lead with Vignola followed by the equalizer of Porto and right before the
end of the first half, the goal scored by Boniek. I never had the impression
that Juventus could risk to lose that game or even to get a second goal.
Juventus seemed to be in their best day, solid, sure, keen to win. These have
been the ratings of the players by Italian newspapers: Tacconi 7, Gentile 7.5,
Cabrini 7, Bonini 6.5, Brio 6.5, Scirea 7, Vignola 7, Tardelli 7, Rossi 6.5,
Platini 7.5, Boniek 8.
Photo From: France
Football, Issue 1989, May 22, 1984
(May 16, 1984, Cup
Winners Cup, Juventus 2- Porto 1)
Soccernostalgia Question: As the season
progressed, Beniamino Vignola became Juevntus’ revelation in Serie A and Europe
(scoring in the Final vs. Porto and a key winner vs. Haka). He never seemed to
build up on the success of this season. Why do you think that was?
Mr. Deodato Response: Vignola was the great solution coming from the bench.
In that season he gave Juventus and unexpected great added value with class,
precision and mental presence. He was always focused on the results of Juventus
and always succeeded in offering creativity. In the following seasons Agnelli
continued having faith on Platini, in both 1984-85, in 1985-86 and also in
1986-87. Vignola waited until the end of the 1984-85 season with just a couple
of matches in Europe with 2 goals scored to Grasshoppers and a good number of
games in Serie A. He wanted more space but Agnelli could not give such a
guarantee. He moved then to Verona but Juventus fans have a good memory of this
great player.
Soccernostalgia Question: The Serie A
would have always been Juventus’ main objective. Do you feel Juventus were
mostly untested in Europe that season due to the luck of the draw?
Mr. Deodato Response: I dont see it this way. In the first round it was
always probable to meet a weaker team. In the second round (Round of 16),
Juventus drew one of the toughest teams, Paris Saint-Germain. Before the draw,
when he had been asked which team he wants to avoid, Platini answered
"Paris Saint-Germain". The draw with Haka was luck on one side but
also caused a lack of concentration. Juventus was busy in Serie A and they
thought that it woud have been very easy. It wasnt. My feeling is that
Juventus, the fans, the players, the managers, had the great wish to win both
competitions. Scudetto had more importance not only for the title but for the possibility
to make a new try in the main competitions and win it.
Soccernostalgia Question: This was
perhaps Paolo Rossi’s last good season. He came through in the Manchester
United matches. How do you assess his general season in Europe?
Mr. Deodato Response: When Paolo Rossi played, above all after the good
previous season, everyone exptected him to score tons of goals. At the end he
scored in the most decisive moment and, as also Trapattoni said, he helped the
team by creating spaces for the other player. When you have Platini, Boniek,
Rossi and Vignola it is a good thing not to let the opponents know, who will
attack in the center of the defence. Rossi had learned to move more on the left
or right side and leave room to Platini and Boniek. He had learned that all
defenders had studied him and wanted to stop the World Cup champion and top
scorer.
Soccernostalgia Question: One cannot
talk about that season without mentioning Michel Platini. However, in Europe,
he did not seem as dominant. Was it a question of tactics?
Mr. Deodato Response: After Athens and the defeat with Hamburg Platini has
surely had a period where he had to rebreath. It was always hard for him to
understand why Italians think of football 7 days out of 7 while in France only
in the 2 days of the games, on Sunday and Wednesday. Still, when he did not
play, Juventus missed him like in Juventus - Haka in Turin. He scored 20 goals
in Serie A with only 3 penalty kicks. He knew that it was his main job: win the
Scudetto (his first one) and book the ticket for the next European Cup. And
this with the European Championships with France in his mind.
Soccernostalgia Question: In closing, this
was Juventus’s second consecutive European Final and in some way was a
consolation after the heartbreak of Athens in 1983. How do Juventus fans regard
this season’s Cup Winners Cup victory?
Mr. Deodato Response: It was a beautiful moment because it was the
confirmation that Juventus belonged to the top European teams. The thought was
that Juventus was the best team, with the best players and that in two years
only one match had been wrong, the one in Athens. We exclude in this count the
first months after the arrival of Platini who needed time to get used to Italy.
In Juventus fans' expectations, nobody could have stopped them in Europe in the
season to come.
Juventus Matches during the Cup Winners Cup, 1983/84 Season:
