European football (and more) when Wenger joined Arsenal
Saturday, October 1, 2016
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Arsène Wenger took over as Arsenal manager on 1 October 20 years ago, but what else happened in 1996 and what did European football look like? UEFA.com dusts down the archives.
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What else happened in football in 1996 ...
• Germany won EURO '96 thanks to Oliver Bierhoff's golden goal against the Czech Republic.
• Germany libero Matthias Sammer was named European Footballer of the Year.
• Juventus beat Ajax on penalties in the 1995/96 UEFA Champions League final in Rome.
• Jari Litmanen, Ajax's scorer in the decider, finished as the competition's leading marksman with nine goals.
• Bayern München completed their set of European trophies with victory against Bordeaux in the UEFA Cup final.
• Nigeria became the first African team to win men's Olympic football gold.
• Ronaldo joined Barcelona from PSV Eindhoven for a world-record transfer fee.
• Manchester United midfielder David Beckham scored from the halfway line against Wimbledon.
• Players born: Kingsley Coman, Dele Alli, Leroy Sané, Marco Asensio, Alen Halilović, Julian Brandt.
When Wenger took over ...
• Litmanen was all-time top scorer in the UEFA Champions League with 16 goals.
• The Milan pair of Paolo Maldini and Sebastiano Rossi had made more UEFA Champions League appearances than anyone else (26).
• There were 50 UEFA associations compared with 55 today.
• Lennart Johansson was just six years into his 17-year tenure as UEFA President.
• Chelsea's Ruud Gullit was the only other Premier League manager from outside the British Isles. Today there are 13.
• Alfredo Di Stéfano was still the European Cup's all-time leading marksman with 49 goals.
• Madrid had won just six of their current tally of 11 European Cups.
• Lionel Messi was nine, Cristiano Ronaldo 11.
Also in 1996 ...
• Bill Clinton was re-elected for a second term as President of the United States of America.
• Bishop Carlos Belo and José Ramos-Horta were awarded the Nobel Peace Price for their work in East Timor.
• Donovan Bailey became men's Olympic 100m champion in a world-record time of 9.84 seconds.
• The English Patient won the Oscar for Best Picture.
• Dolly the sheep became the first mammal to be successfully cloned from an adult cell.