The players of Rijeka played a goalless game against the Ukrainian Shakhtar on the road in Krakow, which was enough for the Croatian champions to qualify for the playoffs of the Conference League.
Rijeka won the “European Spring” for the first time since 1980. So far, the only time the people of Rijeka reached the “Euro Spring” was in the 1979/80 season. when they got to quarter-finals of the Cup Winners’ Cup in which they were eliminated by Juventus.
Since then, the team from Kantrida, and since 2015 from Rujevica it has never wintered in Europe. In the Champions League, it played three times in the qualifiers and never even reached the group stage, while in the UEFA Cup, that is, the European League, since the introduction of groups or the league table, it has never passed the group on four occasions.
This year, it played in the Conference League for the first time, and after more than four decades of waiting, it is again European spring has dawned.
In 1979, Rijeka, then led by Miroslav Blažević, opened its European journey against Belgian Beerschot. After 0-0 in the first match, Rijeka won 2-1 at home. The visitors took the lead in the 34th minute with a goal by Stanislaw Gzil, Milan Radović equalized in the 44th minute, and the same player in the 89th minute brought victory and a pass.
In the second round, there was a trial against Lokomotiva from Košice. In the first match, Rijeka lost 0-2, and both goals were scored by Kozak (29, 39). In return, Rijeka won 3-0, and Damir Desnica played the game of his life, scoring all three goals (2-11m, 43, 75).
Rijeka thus found itself in the selected company of the eight best teams of the Cup Winners’ Cup, alongside giants such as Barcelona, Arsenal, Valencia and next rival Juventus.
It ended goalless at Kantrida, and the “Old Lady” from Turin, led by Giovanni Trapattoni, won 2-0 in front of their fans and advanced to the semi-finals. The scorers for Juve were Franco Causio (5) and Roberto Bettega (72).
Juve was eliminated by Arsenal in the semi-finals, and Valencia won in the final.
Tables enables Sofascore
(China | Photo: Alex Kuhn/ArtService/FORUM/PIXSE/PIXSELL)
