1988: Nacional come through PSV ordeal
Sunday 11 December 1988
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Nacional celebrate winning the 1988 competition (©Getty Images)
Club Nacional 2-2 PSV Eindhoven (aet; Nacional win 7-6 on penalties)
Club Nacional of Uruguay became the first team to win twice in Tokyo in the European/South American Cup as they followed up their 1980 victory against Nottingham Forest FC by seeing off PSV Eindhoven on penalties after an epic contest.
Thrilling game
The trophy returned to South America, but only after a lengthy penalty shoot-out that featured no fewer than 20 attempts. PSV had won the European Champion Clubs' Cup final against SL Benfica by that method, but their luck changed in Tokyo as Nacional eventually prevailed 7-6 after Dutch international full-back Berry van Aerle had missed the decisive kick. Santiago Ostolaza was Nacional's key figure, not only converting a crucial penalty but also scoring both of his team's goals in regular play, the second a crashing header from a corner in the 119th minute. A Ronald Koeman spot-kick eight minutes earlier looked to have given PSV the spoils, this coming after Romário's close-range 76th-minute header had equalised Ostolaza's early opener and taken the match into extra time.
Goalkeeper's confession
Nacional skipper Hugo de León thus lifted the European/South American Cup for the second time – after triumphing with Grêmio in 1983 – but acknowledged that his team had ridden their luck. "Fortune was on our side today," he said. PSV goalkeeper Hans van Breukelen, one of several members of the Netherlands' 1988 UEFA European Championship-winning team on show, took some of the blame for his team's defeat. "We had our hands on the cup but I made mistakes," he admitted.
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