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- #26
I just think there were so many more elite footballers in the 90s and 00s than today (Messi and CR7 aside).I remember the first ever Champions League. There were 2 groups of 4 teams, who had qualified through knockout rounds. CSKA Moscow eliminated Barcelona, Rangers knocked out Leeds...
The first ever CL game was in my hometown Brugge. After school, we rode our bikes home and passed the stadium, where CSKA's players were training on one of the outside grounds. We stayed and acted as ball boys throughout their training session. At night, Club Brugge beat them 1-0 with a goal by Amokachi.
The winners of both groups, Marseille and AC Milan, went straight to the final. No semis or anything like that. Rangers finished only 1 point behind Marseille and in Milan's group, Goteborg finished 2nd. Pre-Bosman, all these teams had no more than 3 foreign players.
The 90ies were a fascinating era. It connects the ancient times of the 80ies with modern football that really took off in the early 00ies. So much happened during that era... The CL, the Bosman ruling, the EPL starting to attract famous players... The goalie could even receive the ball from a teammate and pick up the ball with his hands at the beginning of the 90ies. They were a real mix of old and new football.