The Supercup was played in January 1983, so the opponents met with their 1982-83 squads and problems. Aston Villa vs Barcelona. It was clear by now that Aston Villa was not going to build a dynasty: there were practically no changes in the team. Unlike Nottingham Forest before them, Villa did not add reinforcements to a squad viewed as rather limited. In the new season the boys were no longer doing as well as in the previous season. Meantime Barcelona bought Diego Maradona and on paper should have been fantastic – but it was not. Maradona had hard time adjusting to Spanish football, to Udo Lattek’s demands, to the team, and on top of everything was prone to injuries. Bernd Schuster and Udo Lattek already clashed in the previous season and now the conflict escalated. Alan Simonsen was getting old and dropped from the starters – seemingly he was not a key figure in Lattek’s plans. Instead of improving, Barcelona was getting worse and they hardly were very convincing winners of the Cup Winners Cup to begin with. Given the difficulties, perhaps both clubs wanted to win badly – at least to add some success to their struggles. Motivation may have been high, but January was hardly the best time for big show not only because of the weather, but because both teams had their attention divided between domestic championship and the least coveted international trophy. That was the background – on the ground Barcelona hosted the opening leg and won 1-0.
Harsh battle, but eventually Marcos Alonso scored in the 52nd minute.
1st Leg, Nou Camp, Barcelona, 19 Jan 1983, att n/a
FC Barcelona (0) 1 Aston Villa (0) 0
52′ 1-0 B: Marcos
FC Barcelona
Urruti, Tente, Migueli, Julio Alberto, Periko Alonso (Urbano 75), Alexanko,
Marcos Alonso, Schuster, Quini (Pichi Alonso 65), Munoz, Carrasco
Aston Villa
Spink, Jones (Gibson 36), Williams, Evans, McNaught, Mortimer, Bremner, Shaw,
Withe, Cowans, Morley
Referee: Galler (Switzerland)
A week later in Birmingham the battle continued, the hosts strongly encouraged by their fans. But it was still doggy match and Barcelona looked like it will get away with another horrible victory. Aston Villa neutralized Barca only in the 80th minute, when Shaw scored at last.
It was difficult match, even goals present more signs of battle than finesse and joy of scoring. The game went into overtime and only now the English pushed ahead more effectively, scoring 2 more goals. Three red cards ‘graced’ this match, only to show what kind of football was played. But Aston Villa won.
2nd Leg, Villa Park, Birmingham, 26 Jan 1983, att n/a
Aston Villa (1) 3 FC Barcelona (0) 0
80′ 1-0 A: Shaw
100′ 2-0 A: Cowans (pen)
104′ 3-0 A: McNaught
Aston Villa won 3-1 on aggregate
Aston Villa
Spink, Williams, Evans, McNaught, Gibson, Bremner, Blair, Cowans, Shaw (Birch 88)
Withe, Morley (Walters 76)
FC Barcelona
Urruti, Tente, Migueli, Alexanko, Julio Alberto, Periko Alonso, Schuster, Munoz,
Marcos Alonso, Urbano, Carrasco (Quini 30, Manolo 55)
Referee: Ponnet (Belgium)
Red cards: Julio Alberto 53, Marcos Alonso 106, Evans 120
Top, left to right: Javier Urruticoechea, Jose Sanchez, Bernd Schuster, Jose Ramon Alexanco, Julio Alberto, Migueli.
Bottom, left to right: Pericho Alonso, Marcos Alonso, Urbano Ortega, Victor Munoz, Francisco Carrasco.
Well, one thing was certain – Bernd Schuster did not get an European trophy. Not in the team winning the Cup Winners Cup and on the losing end at the Supercup final. Maradona did not play at all.
Winners kind of smiling. Back row, left to right: Gary Williams, Colin Gibson, Peter Withe, Nigel Spink, Gary Shaw;
Front row: Andy Blair, Des Bremner, Mark Walters, Ken McNaught, Gordon Cowans, Tony Morley.
Wonderful, but largely because this was the end. The ascent of Aston Villa started after 1975 and reached its peak in 1981-82. This was the swan song… rather short-lived success. Let’s face it: there was no major star in the squad. Without additional players Aston Villa had no chance – it was over already. And because of that, it was wonderful they won the Supercup – Barcelona would have many more chances, but not Aston Villa. Well done.