Aek Athens - Marseille First Half 1989

In 1989, AEK faced Marseille in the Champions League, against a team that wasn't just the French champion but also an emerging force in European football. With Bernard Tapie lavishly spending money, Marseille had several international football stars of the time. The Uruguayan Enzo Francescoli, the Englishman Chris Waddle, and some of the top players of the French National Team (Papin, Tigana, Amoros, Sauzée, and the young Didier Deschamps, who was on the bench).

However, AEK put up a fight. They lost 2-0 at "Velodrome," but not before the referee Sandoz unjustly disallowed a clear goal by Patikas. In the return leg, AEK dominated from the start and for a few minutes came close to a miracle. In the 78th minute, they won a penalty, with Patikas brought down by the Brazilian Mozer. Toni Savevski, with a cheeky shot reminiscent of Antonin Panenka's legendary penalty in the Euro '76 final, made it 1-0. However, six minutes later, the great scorer Jean-Pierre Papin equalized, ending AEK's hopes of a comeback.