Today marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most notorious matches to be played – the first leg of the European Cup semi-final between Celtic and Atletico Madrid .
Jock Stein’s men lost the return 2-0 but sealed a ninth straight Scottish title just three days later. But none of the 70,000 fans who witnessed the thuggery at Celtic Park realised they were also watching the curtain come down on a golden era. Celtic had beaten Inter Milan to win the European Cup in 1967 then lost to Feyenoord in the 1970 final.
However, in the 50 years since that night of shame, Celtic have only twice won a knockout round in Europe after Christmas – and not since 2004. What’s more, their European record in the last half-century has been poorer than Rangers. The Ibrox side have won Euro ties in the second half of seven seasons since then despite not competing at all between 2011 and 2017.
McGhee, who played for both Dons and Celts, said: “I’m shocked. If you’d asked me how many years they’d managed to eliminate somebody after Christmas, I’d have said more than half a dozen at the very least. But football changed significantly during that time. Celtic just can’t compete with the big guns when it comes to finance and they find it difficult to attract players to Scotland.
Celtic Atletico Madrid European Cup Semi-Final Brutality Challenges Jock Stein Scottish Title
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