Intercontinental Club Cup 1970
1st. leg: Venue: Buenos Aires. Field: Boca Juniors ("La Bombonera"). August 26, 1970 Estudiantes de La Plata (Argentina) 2-2 Feijenoord (Netherlands) Goals: Echecopar, Verón / Willem van Hanegem, Ove Kindvall. Estudiantes LP: Néstor Martín Errea - Rubén Oscar Pagnanini, Hugo Spadaro, Néstor Togneri, Oscar Miguel Malbernat - Carlos Salvador Bilardo (Jorge Raúl Solari), Carlos Oscar Pachamé, Juan Miguel Echecopar (Christian Rudzki) - Marcos Norberto Conigliaro, Eduardo Raúl Flores, Juan Ramón Verón. Feijenoord: Eddy Treytel - Piet Romeijn, Rinus Israël, Theo Laseroms, Theo van Duivenbode, Franz Hasil, Wim Jansen, Willem van Hanegem (Jan Boskamp), Henk Wery, Ove Kindvall, Coen Moulijn.
Contrary to expectations the first leg wasn't dirty and the Dutch were not under threat from fans. Estudiantes showed pleasant face – rather clean attacking football, which gave them 2-0 lead. Feyenoord – still under its old spelling Feijenoord – came back quickly, surprising the hosts with stamina and skill. The tempo of Feyenoord was too much for the Argentines and Bilardo and Echecobar had to be substituted exhausted. Bilardo said after the match that Feyenoord surprised them and the team was not prepared to play such physically challenging football. Which provided for 2 goals and end result 2-2. It was quite obvious to many that Feyenoord practically bagged the trophy, yet Osvaldo Zubeldia bagged to differ, saying that nothing is finished and this year was certainly Estudiantes' year. His opinion was considered unrealistic, at best, arrogant at worst, but the foxy coach apparently knew what he was saying. Meantime Eddy Treytel said he was guilty for both Argentine goals, his teammates played perfectly. 2nd. leg: Venue: Stadion Feijenoord ("De Kuip"), Rotterdam. September 9, 1970 Feijenoord (Netherlands) 1-0 Estudiantes de La Plata (Argentina) Goal: Joop van Daele. Feijenoord: Eddy Treytel - Piet Romeijn, Rinus Israël, Theo Laseroms, Theo van Duivenbode, Franz Hasil (Jan Boskamp), Wim Jansen, Willem van Hanegem, Henk Wery, Ove Kindvall, Coen Moulijn (Joop van Daele). Coach: Ernst Happel. Estudiantes LP: Oscar Pezzano - Oscar Miguel Malbernat, Hugo Spadaro, Néstor Togneri, José Hugo Medina - Carlos Salvador Bilardo, Carlos Oscar Pachamé, Daniel Romero (Rubén Oscar Pagnanini) - Marcos Norberto Conigliaro, (Christian Rudzki), Eduardo Raúl Flores, Juan Ramón Verón. Coach: Osvaldo Juan Zubeldía.
The second leg in Rotterdam showed the true colours of Estudiantes: two-faced demons. They left only two men ahead – Veron as lonely striker and Bilardo in midfield to provide him with balls whenever possible. The rest were entrenched in defense, displaying every dirty trick and brutality Estudiantes was already famous for. Not a trace from gentlemanly approach in Buenos Aires. Feyenoord was not exactly surprised by such a change, but the game eroded into tough battle and no football. Still Feyenoord was attacking and got chances to score – and even scored. Van Hanegem scored a goal dismissed by the Peruvian referee. A record of a kind was made – this was third goal by Feyenoord disallowed after two dismissed in Buenos Aires. Estudiantes masterly played the offside trap and the Dutch routinely fell into it. The second half started with another surprise: Estudiantes suddenly started playing football and the match became more pleasant and interesting. Now Feyenoord had to play defense at last and the Argentines were close to scoring on few occasions. Yet, Estudiantes did not crush Feyenoord – rather both teams tried to attack and score, eventually Feyenoord managed to do it. Curiously, it was not the player everybody expecting to score – Coen Moulijn – but the newcomer substituting him, Joop van Daele. And this was the only, but decisive goal of the game.
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Feyenoord won the trophy. The best in the world. Hard battle they won against a dirty foe.
The Dutch were coming to the world attention – first victory on such a scale. Not only that, but they were only the forth European club succeeding after Real Madrid, Inter and Milan.
Champions of the world. No doubt the greatest year for Feyenoord. Curiously, they played both legs of the Intercontinental Cup in their reserve kit: green shirts with white sleeves, black shorts and socks. As for the photo, 1969-70 is practically wrong – true, success belong to that season, but since the Intercontinental Cup was played in late August and early September 1970, the squad effectively belong to 1970-71 vintage. True, little changes in the squad between the two seasons, but Ruud Geels was gone to Go Ahead Eagles and Eddy Pieters Graafland retired, for example. Joop van Daele was the hero against Estudiantes and his glasses were ripped off and smashed after the match by the Argentines, Carlos Pachame did the smashing. Yes, he was playing with glasses... very dangerous against gauchos, but the Cup belonged to him and his teammates.
