#**MATCH INFORMATION**

**Competition :** European Cup / Champions League

**Date :** 20 May 1992

**Venue :** Wembley Stadium , London

**Attendance :** 70,827

**Referee :** Aron Schmidhuber (Germany)

##**Way to the final :**

**UC Sampdoria :**

1st Round : 7-1 aggregate win over Rosenberg , pretty much a stomp

2nd Round : 4-3 aggregate win over Honvèd, a very tight game against Hungarian champions who have seen resurgence since the times of Puskás and Kocsis

Group A : winners with 8 points ahead of Crvena Zvezda, Anderlecht and Panathinaikos. Quite controversial since the defending champions Crvena Zvezda weren’t allowed to play on home soil due to Yugoslav wars so they practically played all of their games away which helped Sampdoria to narrowly qualify.

**FC Barcelona :**

1st round : 3-1 aggregate win over Hansa Rostock, champions of East Germany were solid, but never threatened Barca

2nd round : 3-3 aggregate away goal win against Kaiserslautern , quite a German tournament for Barca thus far, a solid 2:0 win at Camp Nou was almost ruined as Barca were down 3:0 in Germany only for Bakero to score a last minute winner

Group B : winners with 9 points ahead of Sparta Prague, Benfica and Dynamo Kyiv. A rather comfortable group for Barca although the Czechs gave a solid resistance, almost drawing at Camp Nou and beating us in Prague.

##**Lineups and squads**

###**Barcelona**

Squad :

1 Andoni Zubizarreta (age 31) - Barca’s on field captain, one of the finest Spanish keepers, great leader and shot stopper although not the best at ball playing compared to the Barca keepers we have today

2 Nando (age 24) - the more typical CB of Cruijff’s Barca, Nando is usually the one to deal with defensive duties while other technically better players push the ball forward

3 Albert Ferrer (age 21) - one of the gems of La Masia, Ferrer easily broke into the squad where he performs multiple defensive roles whether as a fullback or a centreback, great at going forward and a solid defender

4 Ronald Koeman (age 29) - one of the biggest stars and best players not only at Barca, but the entire world. Koeman is the perfect Cruijffian defender with immense tactical and technical ability, as well as leadership, calmness and strength. Is usually deployed as a sweeper which allows him to utilize all of his many talents

5 Juan Carlos (age 27) - a solid player usually deployed on the left side of the field in various roles, his duty is usually to stretch the opposition and run forward to combine with Stoichkov

6 José Mari Bakero (age 29) - it’s difficult to pinpoint the exact role Bakero has in Johan’s team as he pretty much does everything, an all around box to box monster whose hard work and intelligence make him a key part and captain of the team, a role which he occasionally shares with Zubi

7 Julio Salinas (age 29) - very technical for his height, Salinas is a standard CF, but can play wide as well. Good shot, great instinct for getting into goalscoring opportunities and overall good linkup play.

8 Hristo Stoichkov (age 26) - what is there to be said about Hristo? Leads Barca’s attack with supreme technical quality, an eye for goal, brute strength and leadership. Quick, technical, great linkup play, can assist as well as he scores and can play many positions, but Johan usually deploys him on the left. Easily one of the best players around

9 Michael Laudrup (age 27) - the brain of the whole operation, Laudrup has a free roaming role in Johan’s team with little defensive duties. Immense intelligence allows him to connect the entire team into a lethal machine. Technicality-vice the best player in the world, he does much more than just assisting and scoring

10 Josep Guardiola (age 21) - arguably the best player to walk out of La Masia, Pep is already a key player at a young age. Together with Koeman he carries the ball forward, but is also very involved with defending. Very smart and tactically aware

11 Eusebio Sacristán (age 28) - a standard member of Johan’s team for years, Eusebio usually plays very centrally and recycles possession, but is far from technically inept

12 José Ramón Alexanko (age 36) - the most senior member of the team and the official squad captain, although he rarely plays. An extremely strong and technical central defender, often deployed as a sweeper. His mentality and leadership see him being used as a sub when Barca needs to protect the lead or turn the game around

13 Carles Busquets (age 24) - the first notable goalkeeper to come out of La Masia, Busi senior is a decent goalkeeper who is good on the ball and is a loyal Barca player

14 Txiki Begiristain (age 27) - Txiki is the best Barca winger who provides speed and width in combination with being a very prolific goalscorer. Can play multiple positions as well

15 Miguel Ángel Nadal (age 25) - another versatile player who can play in defense and midfield. Nadal is at his best when he can push forward and is usually deployed as a fullback

16 Jon Andoni Goikoetxea (age 26) - can play various positions on the right flank, but is usually deployed as a wide back or a winger. Great crossing and playmaking ability

Johan Cruijff (age 55) - symbol of total football, a genius on and off the pitch, an influential figure and a revolutionary. His team plays quick passing football with strong press. The key is to keep possession and move as a unit. Likes players who can play multiple positions and are technical above all. Also develops youth from La Masia which he basically created as a player. His long term Barca teammate Carles Rexach is his assistant.

Lineup :

Zubizarreta - Nando, Koeman, Ferrer - Guardiola - Eusebio, Juan Carlos - Bakero - Stoichkov, Laudrup, Salinas

###**Sampdoria**

Squad :

Sampa are a top squad lead by multiple stars.

On goal we have Gianluca Pagliuca who is one of the best keepers in the world.

Their experienced defense is led by legendary Pietro Vierchowod who is one of the all time greats, followed by Sampa’s best ever RB Moreno Mannini, the young but promising CB Marco Lanna and experienced Slovenian LB Srečko Katanec.

Midfield is arguably their weakest part, but still nothing to laugh at. As the defensive midfield pair we have Fausto Pari and Brazilian legend Toninho Cerezo, both veterans.  Flanks are covered by Attilio Lombardo on the right and Ivano Bonetti on the left who both provide speed and creativity.

Lastly their lethal strike force, the pairing of the team captain Roberto Mancini and Gianluca Vialli, both experienced goalscorers regarded as one of the best in the world, with the added benefit of playing with each other for nearly a decade.

From the bench we have the goalkeeper Giulio Nuciari, older of the Bonetti brothers Dario who is a defender, midfielders Renato Buso and experienced Giovanni Invernizzi, and lastly the Brazilian striker Paulo Silas.

Coaching the team is the old fox from Serbia Vujadin Boškov who has patiently been building this monstrous Sampa squad for 6 years.

Lineup :

Pagliuca - Mannini, Vierchowod, Lanna, Katanec - Lombardo, Pari, Cerezo, Bonetti - Vialli, Mancini


##**Tactical analysis**

...