1980/81: Georgian joy for Tbilisi
Monday 1 June 1981
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The Rheinstadion hosted the 1981 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final (©Getty Images)
FC Dinamo Tbilisi 2-1 FC Carl Zeiss Jena
Rheinstadion, Dusseldorf
With the likes of SL Benfica, AS Roma and Feyenoord on the starting grid, few would have bet on FC Dinamo Tbilisi. But the Georgian team, waving the Soviet flag at the time, produced an excellent campaign and made footballing friends all over the continent. Coach Nodar Akhalkatsi assembled a seductive unit around the subtle midfield dynamo and captain David Kipiani. Power and attacking pace were provided by Ramaz Shengelia and Vladimir Gutsaev, while Alexandre Chivadze defended superbly. No one took much notice of them until they beat West Ham United FC 4-1 in London and, in the semi-final, trounced Feyenoord 3-0 in Tbilisi, only to go 2-0 down after an hour in Rotterdam and to muster all their defensive resources to clinch their passport to Düsseldorf.
Eyebrows raised
Hans Mayer’s FC Carl Zeiss Jena raised continental eyebrows in the first round when, after losing 3-0 in the Italian capital, they thrashed AS Roma 4-0 in Jena. To show it was no fluke, they then eliminated the defending champions, Valencia CF, 3-2 on aggregate and confirmed their pedigree by beating SL Benfica 2-1 on aggregate in the semi-final.
Superb comeback
The second finalists from the German Democratic Republic looked like becoming the second champions when Gerhard Hoppe gave them a 63rd minute lead in a closely-fought final watched by only 9,000 in the Rheinstadion. But Gutsaev equalised four minutes later and, when Vitali Darasselia made it 2-1 after 87 minutes, the trophy was on its one and only journey to Georgia.
| FC Dinamo Tbilisi - FC Carl Zeiss Jena | 2 - 1 |
| Stage | Final |
| Half-Time | 0 - 0 |
| Date | 13.05.1981 |
| Kick-Off | 20:15:00 |
| Venue | Rheinstadion |
| City/Town | Düsseldorf |
| Attendance | 4,750 |
| Referee | LATTANZI Riccardo (ITA) |
| Match Report | |||||
 | 63' | HOPPE Gerhard | |||
| 67' | GUTSAEV Vladimir | |||
 | 67' | SVANADZE Zaur (out) / KAKILASHVILI Nugzar (in) | |||
| 76' | BIELAU Andreas (out) / TÖPFER Thomas (in) | |||
| 87' | DARASSELIA Vitali | |||
| 88' | HOPPE Gerhard (out) / ÖVERMANN Ulrich (in) | |||
| Team Line-Ups | |
| FC Dinamo Tbilisi | FC Carl Zeiss Jena |
| GABELIZA Otari (G) | GRAPENTHIN Hans-Ulrich (G) |
| KOSTAVA Tamaz | BRAUER Gerd |
| CHIZANISHVILI Nodar | SCHNUPHASE Rüdiger |
| CHIVADZE Alexandre | KURBJUWEIT Lothar (C) |
| SULAKVELIDZE Tengiz | SCHILLING Wolfgang |
| TAVADZE Georgi | HOPPE Gerhard |
| DARASSELIA Vitali | KRAUSE Andreas |
| KIPIANI David (C) | LINDEMANN Lutz |
| SVANADZE Zaur | BIELAU Andreas |
| GUTSAEV Vladimir Gutsaev | RAAB Jürgen |
| SHENGELIA Ramaz | VOGEL Eberhard |
| Used Substitutes | |
| KAKILASHVILI Nugzar | TÖPFER Thomas |
| ÖVERMANN Ulrich | |
| Head Coach | |
| AKHALKATSI Nodar | MAYER Hans |
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