“The European Super Cup was difficult, only two or three of us took it”

Legendary midfielder for Dynamo Kiev Vladimir Muntyan, participant of the 1975 European Super Cup in Kiev shared his memories of this historic fight. October 6 marks exactly 45 years since the Dynamo’s legendary victory over Bayern Munich and the club’s conquest of the prestigious Eurotrophy.

– Vladimir Fedorovich, with what expectations were you flying to the first game with Bayern Munich after getting injured in Yerevan?

– After the game with Ararat, we had a whole company of beaten – wounded, and I was among them. We flew to Munich with the expectation that the game would be difficult, because the opponent was formidable. When we arrived, Valery Vasilyevich met us at the airport. And when they told him that we had four or five wounded, he joked saying: Why did you come then ?! Let’s pack back! But the next day, in pregame training, there was no time for jokes: eight or nine people entered the field …

– With such a scenario, you probably expected to win in the first match?

– At that time we were on the rise, because we won the Recopa. Of course, we realized who our rival was, but we knew it and what they were eating it with. We had an inner drive, confidence in ourselves. It wasn’t some kind of arrogance, but the team was on the rise emotionally.

– Watching the first game from the bench, have you already noticed any weaknesses in Bayern’s game?

– Yes, it was not before that, they were more concerned about what was happening on the football field. We were eager to get out there and help the team. Sitting on the bench injured and watching the game is the worst thing a footballer can do. Going out onto the field and playing is much easier than sitting and watching from the side. Especially when you are traumatized.

– How exciting was it for you to enter the field in the second leg in Kiev? Did the excitement around the game motivate or exert any kind of psychological pressure?

– What do you mean, this excitement around the team and the colossal support of the fans only helped us, motivated us. Just imagine, more than a hundred thousand fans in the stands! Our team was growing. In addition, it was not just anyone who approached us, but a team as eminent as Bayern, winner of the last two Champions Cups, which has so many world champions in its composition. We were totally mobilized for this match.

– It was difficult to get tickets to the stadium, but the players had the opportunity to get a certain quota. How many of them did you get and who did you help enter the game?

– Yes, there was no space, we couldn’t even get free tickets, but we had an advantage: the opportunity to buy without queuing. Of course, all the boys were handing over their friends, the ones who asked.

– Before Oleg Blokhin scored the second goal with a free kick, you and Leonid Buryak, renowned masters of set pieces, were in front of the ball. So was it conceived that Blokhin would break through or was it a spontaneous decision?

– As far as I remember, I took the ball in my hands and had to take this penalty. But when he said it, Blokhin approached me with the words: Volodya, let me hit. I feel like I’m going to score. I lost, and I didn’t tell him that I also felt I would score (laughs). When Oleg dialed, I told him. Of course, then it sounded more like a joke. And the fact that before the hit there were three of us, Leni also had a wonderful hit, she also met the standards. But before he came to the Dynamo, he was shooting free throws more often.

– Were the players not upset that immediately after the match they were not awarded medals due to the loss of Artemio Franchi’s luggage at the Vienna airport? And under what circumstances did the medals find their heroes?

– It’s okay. Of course, as they say, a spoonful for dinner is expensive, but the main thing is that they have not been forgotten. We were also awarded medals in a solemn atmosphere, before a Union championship game.

– Do you have this medal?

– I gave it to a museum through the sports committee. Then they agitated us to pass on all those historic awards and make them common property.

– You once said that you still left a memorable memory about this match: the ball …

– Indeed, I left the ball that was used in the Super Cup final. Autographs collected on it. Bayern and Dynamo players.

– Oleg Blokhin asked you for this dance? After all, he scored two goals …

– He didn’t have time to take this ball, I went ahead. And even if I asked, I wouldn’t give (laughs).

– The post-match Super Cup was lifted by three Dynamo players at once, after the UEFA president failed to hand it over to the captain. Have you tried lifting it alone?

– Of course, no. We barely got it together, three of us. It was a heavy trophy. It got even heavier when champagne was poured into the locker room. How many bottles will fit in it, I honestly don’t remember (laughs).

– They say that after the triumph in the European Super Cup, the Dynamo players decided their accommodation and transport problems …

– In fact, nobody gave us cars for the victory. We buy them for our own money. But they gave permission to buy a car, it was very important in those days.

– How often did you watch this recorded match and with what emotions?

– I looked at it several times. Someone had a recording of the match, I think Leni Buriak. I remember that the first game left the impression that Bayern attacked a lot and put pressure on our goal. But when we looked at the tape, we saw it. that the opponent had no advantage. Our boys, Petya Slobodyan himself, had a good time.

– But in the second leg, one of the teams already had a clear advantage – Dynamo …

– Bavaria arrived in Kiev without an ideal composition. Gerd Müller was afraid to go, because in our team there was Stirlitz – Styopa Reshko (laughs). We nicknamed him because he was holding Muller so tightly that he didn’t know what to do.