On This Day in Football: 26th May

26th May 1982

On this day, Aston Villa’s goalkeeper Nigel Spink made a memorable appearance in the European Cup Final. Spink, who joined Aston Villa in 1977, had only made his League debut on Boxing Day 1979 during a defeat at Nottingham Forest. His second appearance for the first team came on 26th May 1982, in the European Cup Final against Bayern Munich, held in Rotterdam. Spink was called into action in the 10th minute as a substitute after first-choice goalkeeper Jimmy Rimmer was forced to leave the pitch due to injury. Spink delivered an outstanding performance, keeping a clean sheet. Peter Withe scored the only goal of the match, securing Aston Villa’s victory and crowning them European champions. This victory marked the sixth consecutive season that an English team had won Europe’s top club competition.

26th May 1984

On this day, Gary Lineker made his debut for the England national team. The Leicester City forward came on as a substitute in the 72nd minute, replacing Tony Woodcock, during a match against Scotland at Hampden Park. The match ended in a 1-1 draw, marking the beginning of Lineker’s international career with England.

26th May 1999

On this day, Manchester United achieved a historic victory in the Champions League Final at the Nou Camp in Barcelona. Facing Bayern Munich, United’s hopes of winning the Champions League for the first time seemed bleak after conceding a goal just six minutes into the match. As the final whistle approached, Bayern Munich maintained their lead. However, in a dramatic turn of events, Manchester United scored twice in injury time. Substitute Teddy Sherringham equalised in the first minute of injury time, followed by Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s winning goal a minute later. This remarkable comeback secured the Champions League trophy for Manchester United, completing a treble that included the Premier League title and the FA Cup, all in the same season.