The 100 Greatest Games of All Times?

[Gregoriak]

I took the following countdown from the February issue of 11 Freunde (http://www.11freunde.de/).

http://www.11freunde.de/img/cover/heft63_300.jpg

Their list is of course very subjective and there are a couple of games included which made me cringe (Australia's 31-0 vs. Samoa for instance). Also, being a German football mag, their attention is naturally biased a bit towards all kinds of German games. On the other hand, games from South America are inexplicably overlooked, which is inexcusable. Most of the universally acknowledged classics are featured, though (although they apparently forgot Benfica 5-2 Real from 1962).

My hope is that this thread serves as a starting point for an interesting discussion.

[Gregoriak]

Positions #100 to #80 with a shortened commentary.

100 REAL MADRID 0-2 AJAX AMSTERDAM
22 November 1995, Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Champions League, preliminary round
Real coach Jorge Valdano after the game: “Ajax is not only the team of the 1990s, they are approaching football utopia.”


99 BLACKPOOL 4-3 BOLTON WANDERERS
2 May 1953, Wembley stadium, London, F.A. Cup final
The legendary “Matthews final”.


98 FRANCE 1-1 (5-4 pens) BRAZIL
21 June 1998, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara, World Cup quarterfinal
The duel of the magic midfields.


97 PARIS ST. GERMAIN 4-1 REAL MADRID
18 March 1993, Parc des Princes, Paris, UEFA-Cup quarterfinal, second leg
Paris had lost the first leg 1-3. Frenetically supported by 45,000, Paris led 3-0 until the very last minutewhen Ivan Zamorano scored Real’s supposedly saving goal. But injury time lasted six minutes, enough time for Kambouré to score PSG’s decisive fourth goal.


96 EMPOR ROSTOCK 1-3 VORWÄRTS BERLIN
19 June 1962, Ostseestadion, Rostock, East German Oberliga, matchday 33
The play-off game that decided the East German championship. Berlin’s forward Jürgen Noldner before the game predicted that he would score in the 15th and the 75th minute. He then managed to score in the 12th and the 72nd …


95 FC BARCELONA 3-2 FC VALENCIA
17 June 2001, Camp Nou, Barcelona, Primera Division, matchday 38
Rivaldo’s greatest game.


94 GERMANY 16 RUSSIA 0
1 July 1912, Rasunda Stadion, Stockholm, Olympic Football
Legend has it that the Czar refused to pay the players’ travel expenses.


93 SPAIN 9-0 AUSTRIA
27 March 1999, Estadio Mestalla, Valencia, European Championship qualifier
Spain was under pressure after having lost to Cyprus previously. Then came this game against 1998 World Cup participant Austria.


92 WEST HAM UNITED 0-5 HAKOAH VIENNA
3 September 1923, Upton Park, London, friendly
Hakoah became the first continental club side to beat an English side on their own turf. And they did it in style, similar to the Magic Magyars 30 years later. After the game, Walther Bensemann, chief editor of Germany’s “kicker” magazine stated that “the supremacy of English football is beat.”


91 WEST GERMANY 3-2 HOLLAND
14 June 1980, Stadio San Paolo, Naples, European Championship preliminary round
Klaus Allofs scored all three West German goals, 20-year-old Bernd Schuster impressed as central midfielder. One of Germany’s best ever performances in a Euro game, being up 3-0 with well-versed attacking football before the Dutch scored two late consolidation goals.


90 KARLSRUHE SC 3 BORUSSIA DORTMUND 3
27 November 1993, Wildparkstadion, Karlsruhe, Bundesliga, matchday 18
After 19 minutes, Dortmund was up 3-0. Then came the best 15 minutes in the history of Russian dribble wizard Sergey Kiryakov, scoring three goals between the 30th and the 45th minute. Probably disgruntled because he failed to score a fourth goal in the second half, Kiryakov crowned his greatest game with a sent-off 15 minutes before time.


89 AUSTRALIA 31-0 AMERICAN SAMOA
11 April 2001, International Sports stadium, Coffs Harbour, World Cup qualifier
Archie Thompson set a new record for goals scored in an international game: 13.


88 FRANCE 2-1 a.e.t. PORTUGAL
28 June 2000, Stade Roi Baudoin, Brussels, European Championship, semi final
Picked because of the tumultuous brawl near the end of the game after referee Benkö gave a penalty for France in extra-time, which were only interrupted by Zidane’s Golden Goal.


87 DENMARK 5-0 YUGOSLAVIA
16 June 1984, Stade de Gerland, Lyon, European Championship, Preliminary round
Denmark’s coach Sepp Piontek’s order before the game: “Play offensively”. They did just that, which Sören Lerby as conductor in midfield and Michael Laudrup and Preben Elkjaer-Larsen in attack. Piontek after the game: “That we would be that strong I would not have hoped for in my dreams.”


86 INTERNAZIONALE 3-2 AC MILAN
11 December 2005, Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, Milan, Serie A, Matchday 15
Adriano scored Inter’s winner in the 92nd minute with a massive shot, ending one of the best games between these city rivals in recent years.


85 FORTUNA DÜSSELDORF 6-5 BAYERN MUNICH
7 June 1975, Rheinstadion, Düsseldorf, Bundesliga, matchday 33
Gerd Müller scored three goals between the 38th and 42nd minute, giving Bayern a half-time lead of 4-2 …


84 ARGENTINA 1-1 (6-5 pens) ENGLAND
30 June 1998, Stade Geoffrey-Guichard, St. Etienne, World Cup second round
One of the best World Cup games of the 1990s.


83 HAMBURG SV 4-4 JUVENTUS
13 September 2000, Volksparkstadion, Hamburg, Champions League, preliminary round
HSV were trailing 1-3 in their newly modernized arena eight minutes before the final whistle. But then the hosts scored three goals, one of them a penalty by goalkeeper Jörg Butt, but then Inzaghi scored his third goal seconds before time, securing Juve a point. A Hamburg newspaper wrote the next day: “A football game changes the city.”


82 BORUSSIA MÖNCHENGLADBACH 2-8 BAYER LEVERKUSEN
30 October 1998, Bökelberg Stadion, Mönchengladbach, Bundesliga, matchday 10
Well.


81 BAYER UERDINGEN 2-1 BAYERN MUNICH
26 May 1985, Olympiastadion, Berlin, German Cup final
Underdog Uerdingen beat big favorites Bayern in the German Cup final.


80 BAYERN MUNICH 1-1 a.e.t. ATLETICO MADRID
15 May 1974, Heysel stadium, Brussels, European Cup final, first game
Bayern’s unlikely hero was center back Hans-Georg ‘Katsche’ Schwarzenbeck who scored the last-second equalizer in the 120th minute with a long range effort. Bayern won the replay two days later 4-0. Schwarzenbeck’s goal was arguably the most important in the history of the club.

[dor02]

Game 98 should be in the Top 10. Shocking.

Game 82 would have been great to watch and there are two BL games that didn't make your Top 111, Gregoriak.

[Gregoriak]

Gladbach's 2-8 at home vs. Leverkusen was not considered by me because of the awful state Gladbach was in at that time (they were relegated that season and no hope from the start of the season). The Fortuna 6-5 Bayern game was not featured in my countdown because there was nothing at stake for both sides at that point (second before last game of the season) and it was a leisurely, not seriously led game. Thus the only game that probably should have made my countdown was the KSC 3-3 BVB, looked like a marvellous first half.

France-Brazil shocked me as well being that low down the list.

[Eliezar]

Game 98 should be in the Top 10. Shocking.

Game 82 would have been great to watch and there are two BL games that didn't make your Top 111, Gregoriak.

The dive for the PK in that game was a top 10 dive anyway.

My favorite games of all time are Cameroon vs England 90 and Brasil vs Denmark in 98.

I am sure the Liverpool vs AC Milan Champions League final will be up there somewhere.

[dor02]

The dive for the PK in that game was a top 10 dive anyway.It doesn't really matter that Branco dived or not? Zico missed the penalty anyway.

[Excape Goat]

It will b interesting to see which match ranks above Match#98. Being a German magazine, I will wager the 1982 semi-final between West Germany and France is probably #1 or at least top 5.

[dreamer]

It will b interesting to see which match ranks above Match#98. Being a German magazine, I will wager the 1982 semi-final between West Germany and France is probably #1 or at least top 5.

I'm interested too. South Korea Italy 2002 should make this list.

[Gregoriak]

98 FRANCE 1-1 (5-4 pens) BRAZIL
21 June 1998, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara, World Cup quarterfinal
The duel of the magic midfields.




Alright, there's a little typo. The game in question is of course from 1986, not 1998!

[Pachigii!]

North Korea - Portugal 1966
North Korea - Italy 1966

Are they on the list? :confused:

[sidis]

Palmeiras 3x4 Vasco da Gama 2000
Final of mercosul cup, 3rd game, palmeiras at home score 3 goals, vasco comeback in 29 minutes to 4x3, with 10 players.
romario score a hattrick and the last goal in 92 minutes, after the comeback palmeiras hit the bars in 93 minutes.

[Gregoriak]

80 BAYERN MUNICH 1-1 a.e.t. ATLETICO MADRID
15 May 1974, Heysel stadium, Brussels, European Cup final, first game
Bayern’s unlikely hero was center back Hans-Georg ‘Katsche’ Schwarzenbeck who scored the last-second equalizer in the 120th minute with a long range effort. Bayern won the replay two days later 4-0. Schwarzenbeck’s goal was arguably the most important in the history of the club.


79 BAYER LEVERKUSEN 1-2 VfB STUTTGART
16 May 1992, Ulrich-Haberland Stadion, Leverkusen, Bundesliga, matchday 38
The game that decided the Bundesliga championship that year.


78 ENGLAND 1-1 (6-7 pens) GERMANY
25 June 1996, Wembley stadium, London, European Championship semi final
Simply one of the best and most exciting games of the 1990s.


77 YUGOSLAVIA 2-4 WEST GERMANY
17 June 1976, Crvena Zvezda, Belgrade, European Championship semi final
The Yugoslavs were already up 2-0 against the reigning World Champs but then the Germans started one of their most brilliant comebacks. Debutant Dieter Müller was subbed in seven minutes before the end of regular time and then scored the equalizer 20 seconds later. He went on to score two further goals in extra-time.


76 MEIDERICHER SV 4-3 1. FC KAISERSLAUTERN
18 May 1966, Wedaustadion, Duisburg, German Cup semi final
I’m sure this was a pretty good and entertaining game, but among the 100 greatest ever games? Probably not.


75 SPAIN 2-1 SOVIET UNION
21 June 1964, Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, European Cup of Nations final
The 124,000 that came to watch this game celebrated as if they knew that this would remain Spain’s only international triumph …


74 JUVENTUS 2-2 ROMA
6 May 2001, Stadio delle Alpi, Turin, Serie A, matchday 29
Juve desperately needed a win to keep their chances of winning the scudetto alive. First it all went according to plan with Zidane and del Piero assuring a 2-0 lead, but then Nakata scored for Roma and soon afterwards, in the 90th minute, Montella equalized. Roma were champions.


73 DYNAMO DRESDEN 3-2 LOKOMOTIVE LEIPZIG
28 May 1977, Stadion der Weltjugend, Berlin, East German Cup final
Apparently an awesome game. First time I heard about it.


72 ARMINIA BIELEFELD 3-2 TSV 1860 MUNICH
9 May 1981, Alm, Bielefeld, Bundesliga matchday 30
The game that saved Bielefeld from relegation that season. They were down 1-2 at home two minutes before time against direct relegation rivals 1860 Munich, but then scored twice turning the stadium into a madhouse.


71 ROMANIA 3-1 COLOMBIA
19 June 1994, Rose Bowl, Pasadena, World Cup group stage
Hagi scored his wonderful goal in this game and finally proved to the world why people were calling him ‘Carpatian Maradona’ back home.


70 FC ST. PAULI 4-3 (a.e.t.) HERTHA BSC
21 December 2005, Millerntor, Hamburg, German Cup, round of last 16
Fairytale games like this show us why we love football. When Pauli scored the lead for the first time in the 109th minute, the old Millerntor stadium trembled so much that the tv cameras almost fell off the roof.


69 VASCO DA GAMA 1-2 SANTOS FC
19 November 1969, Estadio Journalista Mario Filho (a.k.a. Maracana), Rio de Janeiro, Taca de Prata
This was the game in which Pelé scored his 1,000th goal. Additionally to the historic importance, this was also a pretty good game.


68 ATLETICO MADRID 6-6 ATHLETIC BILBAO
29 January 1950, Estadio del Metropolitano, Madrid, Primera Division, matchday 18
Before Alfredo di Stéfano wrote history for Real Madrid, Moroccan Ben Barek wrote history as the first ‘modern’ playmaker. Barek assisted all six of Atletico’s goals in this classic encounter.


67 NIGERIA 3-2 ARGENTINA
3 August 1996, Sanford stadium, Athens (Georgia), Olympic final
The 1996 Olympic tournament is often overlooked, but it was the first major trophy won by an African side. Already the semi final between the “Super Eagles” and Brazil was a hell of a game (4-3).


66 VfB EPPINGEN 2-1 HAMBURG SV
26 October 1974, Kraichgaustadion, Eppingen, German Cup, second round
Amateur side beats professional side. Still one of the biggest upsets in German Cup history.


65 BAYERN MUNICH 3-3 VfB STUTTGART
15 November 1988, Olympiastadion, Munich, Bundesliga, matchday 14
Stuttgart was up 3-1 two minutes before time, but Bayern managed to score twice in the last 120 seconds. Neat game.


64 AS MONACO 8-3 DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA
5 November 2003, Stade de Louis II, Monaco, Champions League, preliminary round
Deportivo president Augusto Lendoiro only twice attended games of his club in Europe: the first time it was a 1-5 debacle at Arsenal, the second this game. Dado Prso scored four goals and it took FC Porto to stop Monaco with Rothen and Giuly in the CL final.


63 HANNOVER 96 5-1 1. FC KAISERSLAUTERN
23 May 1954, Volksparkstadion, Hamburg, German Championship final
Only a month before the World Cup final, almost half of the German national team that would beat the Magic Magyars in Bern suffered a historic defeat when they lost 1-5 to unfancied Hannover in the final of the German championship. The Hamburg spectators abused German national team manager Sepp Herberger’s name during the second half, as he was loyal to the five Kaiserslautern players that had so utterly disappointed in this important game (the Walter brothers, Eckel, Liebrich and Kohlmeyer)…


62 VfL BOCHUM 5-6 BAYERN MUNICH
18 September 1976, Ruhrstadion, Bochum, Bundesliga, matchday 6
Lowly-ranked Bochum were up 3-0 at half-time and 4-0 shortly after the break against the reigning European champios Bayern Munich. Then came one of the most stunning comebacks ever, as Bayern scored five goals within 20 minutes, turning the score around. Bochum managed to equalize once more but in the last minute of the game Uli Hoeness scored the decisive 6th goal for Bayern. A more detailed review of that game can be found here. ( http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showpost.php?p=9812351&postcount=233)


61 AC MILAN 3-4 FC SAARBRÜCKEN
1 November 1955, Stadio San Siro, Milan, European Cup, first round, first leg
Still one of the most sensational results in European Cup history. Saabrücken from tiny Saarland (then still independent from Germany) with their non-professional players beat the might mighty AC Milan (Schiaffino, Nordahl etc.) at their own ground. More about that game can be read here. ( http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10430000&postcount=3)


60 BRAZIL 1-1 (4-2 pens) HOLLAND
7 July 1998, Stade Velodrome, Marseille, World Cup semi final
Sometimes there are games that did deserve two winners. 120 minutes on the highest level, the crucial factor proved to be Taffarel’s great performance in the Brazil goal and the Dutchmen’s fear of the penalty kick.

[Gregoriak]

North Korea - Portugal 1966
North Korea - Italy 1966

Are they on the list? :confused:


I won't tell you. You must stay tuned to find out. BTW, thanks for posting the goals of the North Korea vs. Portugal game from 1966 in the soccer video forum. Very appreciated.


Palmeiras 3x4 Vasco da Gama 2000
Final of mercosul cup, 3rd game, palmeiras at home score 3 goals, vasco comeback in 29 minutes to 4x3, with 10 players.
romario score a hattrick and the last goal in 92 minutes, after the comeback palmeiras hit the bars in 93 minutes.


Sounds like a game worthy of inclusion in a Top 100 countdown. Thanks for bringing it up.

[argentine soccer fan]

I think from a historical perspective the final of the 1963 Copa Libertadores between Santos and Boca has to figure in the top 100. Pele's Santos and Rattin's Boca were a contrast in styles and played two memorable matches.

The first match was won by the Brazilians at the Maracana in front of over 100,000 people, by a score of 3-2.

The rematch at La Bombonera stadium in La Boca began well for the Argentines, with Sanfilippo scoring to even the global score. With Boca in command, Pele tightly marked, and the home crowd applying the pressure, things looked bad for the legendary Brazilian squad.

But they turned it around, with Coutinho scoring the equalizer half way through the second half. Finally, in the 82nd minute Pele got on the scoreboard with the winning goal, adding to his legendary status, and securing the title for Santos.

This match was also memorable for the incident of Pele mooning the crowd. During the match, his shorts ripped, and he had to get a new pair. Much to the delight of the crowd, Brazil's icon changed shorts right at the middle of the pitch, revealing himself in all his glory.

Whether he meant it or not, some who were at the stadium have said that Pele's 'unveiling' moment was a psychological turning point in the match. It is said that the crowd (which had been very hostile to the Brazilians) loosened up a bit, and that O Rei's actions appeared to help loosen up his Brazilian teammates as well.

The 1963 final was talked about for many years, and it was not until 40 years later that Boca got a chance at revenge, with the squad that featured Carlitos Tevez beating the Santos of Robinho to win the 2003 title.

[sidis]

Sounds like a game worthy of inclusion in a Top 100 countdown. Thanks for bringing it up.

If you want see highlights of the game:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbZfFTC1mjw

And a special from the game:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHcnyF0SFzc

if you have time search in the net a serie calle "jogos para sempre" that is documentary about the great games of all time.

the games are:
Palmeiras x Vasco, 2000

Botafogo x Flamengo, 1989 - the end of 21 years without titles for botafogo

Palmeiras x River, 1999 - a terrific game

Fluminense x Corinthians, 1976 - fluminense mount one of the biggest teams of all time, called "the three colours machine" and 50.000 corinthians supporters voyage 500km to rio de janeiro wanting vengeance over rivelino (ex-corinthians player who was sold to fluminense), 100.000 people on maracanã.

Corinthians x Fluminense, 1984 - the payback of fluminense with a great performance by washingto-assis (called Hart to Hart, the name of a US tv serie of this age)

Flamengo x Vasco, 1978

Corinthians x Ponte, 1977

[Tim Malloy]

Real Madrid 7 - 3 Eintracht Frankfurt in the 1960 European Cup Final is what is generally regarded as the greatest game of all time in my experience, but it did take place in Glasgow, where I live, so opinions could be biased on the topic.
(and of course, the German team lost)

[unclesox]

76-77:
Bayern M - Schalke

77-78:
M'gladbach-Dortmund

78-79:
M'gladbach - HSV
Dussseldorf - Bayern M
Nurnberg - Stuttgart

82-83:
Werder B - HSV
Bielefeld - HSV

Okay Gregoriak. iirc, from this list of seven matches I provided, I believe you had five of them on your list.
So how many did this magazine have? You don't have to say which ones, I'm just curious to know how many.
And is Gladbach-HSV one of them? :D

[unclesox]

I predict 1970 Italy 4-3 West Germany will be #1.

I'm curious to know where they placed the very historical BRD 0-1 DDR from 1974. I wouldn't be shocked if it went top ten.

[dor02]

78 ENGLAND 1-1 (6-7 pens) GERMANY
25 June 1996, Wembley stadium, London, European Championship semi final
Simply one of the best and most exciting games of the 1990s. There's two funny moments in this game. There was Kuntz's goal and the commentator said, "The Germans have scored! KUNTZ!" The best moment though was when Andy Moller went to the English fans and he had his hands on his hips, looking in disgust.

71 ROMANIA 3-1 COLOMBIA
19 June 1994, Rose Bowl, Pasadena, World Cup group stage
Hagi scored his wonderful goal in this game and finally proved to the world why people were calling him ‘Carpatian Maradona’ back home.This game would rank amongst Romania's greatest displays. The win against Argentina should rank highly.


70 FC ST. PAULI 4-3 (a.e.t.) HERTHA BSC
21 December 2005, Millerntor, Hamburg, German Cup, round of last 16
Fairytale games like this show us why we love football. When Pauli scored the lead for the first time in the 109th minute, the old Millerntor stadium trembled so much that the tv cameras almost fell off the roof. That would have been funny to see.


68 ATLETICO MADRID 6-6 ATHLETIC BILBAO
29 January 1950, Estadio del Metropolitano, Madrid, Primera Division, matchday 18
Before Alfredo di Stéfano wrote history for Real Madrid, Moroccan Ben Barek wrote history as the first ‘modern’ playmaker. Barek assisted all six of Atletico’s goals in this classic encounter.A great game that doesn't involve Real or Barca. Good to see.


65 BAYERN MUNICH 3-3 VfB STUTTGART
15 November 1988, Olympiastadion, Munich, Bundesliga, matchday 14
Stuttgart was up 3-1 two minutes before time, but Bayern managed to score twice in the last 120 seconds. Neat game.The 3-0 Stuttgart win in 1987 was better.


64 AS MONACO 8-3 DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA
5 November 2003, Stade de Louis II, Monaco, Champions League, preliminary round
Deportivo president Augusto Lendoiro only twice attended games of his club in Europe: the first time it was a 1-5 debacle at Arsenal, the second this game. Dado Prso scored four goals and it took FC Porto to stop Monaco with Rothen and Giuly in the CL final. I remember hearing from a friend at high school telling me that round's CL scores after 70-75 minutes (it was nearly 9 in the morning and we lived 20-25 minutes from our high school). I believed all the other scores that he told me but when he told me the score of this match, I didn't believe him. A match which should have been one of the tightest in that CL season eventually became one of the great one-sided displays ever.


63 HANNOVER 96 5-1 1. FC KAISERSLAUTERN
23 May 1954, Volksparkstadion, Hamburg, German Championship final
The Hamburg spectators abused German national team manager Sepp Herberger’s name during the second half, as he was loyal to the five Kaiserslautern players that had so utterly disappointed in this important game (the Walter brothers, Eckel, Liebrich and Kohlmeyer)… Maybe they had the World Cup on their minds already. ;)

[lanman]

http://www.football-england.com/charlton_7_huddersfield_6.html

Will this game make the cut?