It is five decades ago now but Wolfgang Kleff is still not allowed to forget the night he created a football first. âOlder fans who lived through that time talk to me about it,â says the 74-year-old. âItâs part of the history of Borussia Mönchengladbach.â
The âitâ? The first save by a goalkeeper in a European Cup penalty shoot-out. It came on the night of 4 November 1970 â exactly 50 seasons ago â at Goodison Park in Liverpool. The man he foiled, Joe Royle, is not allowed to forget it either. âNow and again, if you go to an Everton do, thereâll be some smartarse there who wants to ask me about the Mönchengladbach penalty,â quips the former centre-forward, whose kick was the first of that inaugural shoot-out after two 1-1 draws between the champions of England and Germany in their 1970/71 second-round tie.
Prior to that summerâs adoption of the shoot-out by FIFA, European ties had been settled by replays and coin tosses; Celtic reached the 1970 final via the latter, after a 3-3 aggregate draw with Benfica in the second round. Now this new method came into effect, settling the European Cup Winnersâ Cup first-round tie between HonvĂ©d and Aberdeen in September before this eventful evening on Merseyside.
For Kleff, the home leg in Germany had been noteworthy for a save he did not make: Howard Kendallâs shot from distance eluded him in a moment of distraction prompted by toilet paper thrown from the crowd. âI was trying to roll it up,â he says with a laugh. âI then threw it away and⊠goal!â Â
Kleff had a better night at Goodison. Though beaten, unsighted, by a first-minute Johnny Morrissey cross that sneaked inside the far post, he remembers âone of the best games of my career. I made some great saves and took that self-confidence with me into the shoot-out.â Footage of the evening, from the mud-caked kits to Marlboro and Cinzano pitchside ads, offers a colourful flavour of a different era. Gladbachâs players are wearing yellow socks borrowed from Everton to avoid a colour clash.
Kleff recalls having âno informationâ about the opposition penalty takers. âYou can have a cribsheet in your sock but it doesnât change anything. Iâm a goalkeeper and I have to stop the ball. I have to try and put off the taker, and not commit myself for as long as possible.â Predating Bruce Grobbelaarâs jelly-legged antics during the 1984 final for Liverpool, Kleff wobbled his legs in an attempt to put off Royle and then saved the kick down to his right.
âIâd always said to myself that a right-footer â so that he doesnât have to open up his body â Â would shoot to his left, my right,â explains Kleff. It helped, he adds, that he had foiled Royle several times already, notably with two terrific reflex stops from headers. âI got the impression that he was nervous.â
It is five decades ago now but Wolfgang Kleff is still not allowed to forget the night he created a football first. âOlder fans who lived through that time talk to me about it,â says the 74-year-old. âItâs part of the history of Borussia Mönchengladbach.â
The âitâ? The first save by a goalkeeper in a European Cup penalty shoot-out. It came on the night of 4 November 1970 â exactly 50 seasons ago â at Goodison Park in Liverpool. The man he foiled, Joe Royle, is not allowed to forget it either. âNow and again, if you go to an Everton do, thereâll be some smartarse there who wants to ask me about the Mönchengladbach penalty,â quips the former centre-forward, whose kick was the first of that inaugural shoot-out after two 1-1 draws between the champions of England and Germany in their 1970/71 second-round tie.
Prior to that summerâs adoption of the shoot-out by FIFA, European ties had been settled by replays and coin tosses; Celtic reached the 1970 final via the latter, after a 3-3 aggregate draw with Benfica in the second round. Now this new method came into effect, settling the European Cup Winnersâ Cup first-round tie between HonvĂ©d and Aberdeen in September before this eventful evening on Merseyside.
For Kleff, the home leg in Germany had been noteworthy for a save he did not make: Howard Kendallâs shot from distance eluded him in a moment of distraction prompted by toilet paper thrown from the crowd. âI was trying to roll it up,â he says with a laugh. âI then threw it away and⊠goal!â Â
Kleff had a better night at Goodison. Though beaten, unsighted, by a first-minute Johnny Morrissey cross that sneaked inside the far post, he remembers âone of the best games of my career. I made some great saves and took that self-confidence with me into the shoot-out.â Footage of the evening, from the mud-caked kits to Marlboro and Cinzano pitchside ads, offers a colourful flavour of a different era. Gladbachâs players are wearing yellow socks borrowed from Everton to avoid a colour clash.
Kleff recalls having âno informationâ about the opposition penalty takers. âYou can have a cribsheet in your sock but it doesnât change anything. Iâm a goalkeeper and I have to stop the ball. I have to try and put off the taker, and not commit myself for as long as possible.â Predating Bruce Grobbelaarâs jelly-legged antics during the 1984 final for Liverpool, Kleff wobbled his legs in an attempt to put off Royle and then saved the kick down to his right.
âIâd always said to myself that a right-footer â so that he doesnât have to open up his body â Â would shoot to his left, my right,â explains Kleff. It helped, he adds, that he had foiled Royle several times already, notably with two terrific reflex stops from headers. âI got the impression that he was nervous.â
âWe had practised,â remembers Royle, who had had a spot-kick saved in the previous round against Icelandâs KeflavĂk, before converting the rebound. âI didnât miss many but it wasnât a great penalty.â
The reaction of both men â before the norms of shoot-out behaviour were set â is intriguing to revisit. Royle crouches, crestfallen; Kleff receives congratulations from several track-suited colleagues. When Klaus-Dieter Sieloff then sends Andy Rankin, Evertonâs goalkeeper, the wrong way with Gladbachâs first kick, he is met by four back-slapping team-mates.
Evertonian Frank Keegan, a spectator in the Gwladys Street end at which events were unfolding, remembers that ânobody in the ground seemed sure what would happen next because nobody had seen a penalty shoot-out. Some were hurling abuse at Royle for missing, saying we were out. Others more informed were saying it was best of five.â
Kleffâs own focus, he concedes, could have been better. âAfter that first penalty my concentration went a little bit. I thought a little bit too much about the fact Iâd saved a penalty.â In fairness, he went the right way for Evertonâs second, but Alan Ballâs effort was too fierce. Herbert Laumen, scorer of Gladbachâs equaliser earlier that evening, then rolled their second attempt wide. Then Morrissey and Kendall for Everton, and Jupp Heynckes and Horst Köppel for Gladbach, all converted.
So, at 3-3, to the denouement. Kleff didnât even move as Sandy Brownâs kick sped into the net. That left Ludwig MĂŒller facing Rankin. âThe crowd began to chant his name loudly as he took his place in goal,â says Keegan, and moments later Rankin flew to his right to make the decisive save. âHe was a great reflex keeper,â notes Royle, adding with a chuckle: âThough how he got away with it⊠he was so far off his line.â Â
Evertonâs success did not set a pattern for Anglo-German shoot-outs. Indeed, Royle recalls questions about the nerve of one particular Gladbach player afterwards. âWhat we did comment on in the bath is that their so-called best player, GĂŒnter Netzer, didnât take a penalty. To have your captain not taking one⊠Alan Ball was all over it: âHeâs obviously bottled it.ââ
âI also wondered why GĂŒnter Netzer didnât take a penalty,â says Kleff, yet for him a night that ended in defeat had a lasting silver lining. âWhen books are written about the club, itâs in there. And I get recognition from fathers and grandfathers who associate my name with this game. Because I saved a penalty, I was the only winner!â
It is five decades ago now but Wolfgang Kleff is still not allowed to forget the night he created a football first. âOlder fans who lived through that time talk to me about it,â says the 74-year-old. âItâs part of the history of Borussia Mönchengladbach.â
The âitâ? The first save by a goalkeeper in a European Cup penalty shoot-out. It came on the night of 4 November 1970 â exactly 50 seasons ago â at Goodison Park in Liverpool. The man he foiled, Joe Royle, is not allowed to forget it either. âNow and again, if you go to an Everton do, thereâll be some smartarse there who wants to ask me about the Mönchengladbach penalty,â quips the former centre-forward, whose kick was the first of that inaugural shoot-out after two 1-1 draws between the champions of England and Germany in their 1970/71 second-round tie.
Prior to that summerâs adoption of the shoot-out by FIFA, European ties had been settled by replays and coin tosses; Celtic reached the 1970 final via the latter, after a 3-3 aggregate draw with Benfica in the second round. Now this new method came into effect, settling the European Cup Winnersâ Cup first-round tie between HonvĂ©d and Aberdeen in September before this eventful evening on Merseyside.
For Kleff, the home leg in Germany had been noteworthy for a save he did not make: Howard Kendallâs shot from distance eluded him in a moment of distraction prompted by toilet paper thrown from the crowd. âI was trying to roll it up,â he says with a laugh. âI then threw it away and⊠goal!â Â
Kleff had a better night at Goodison. Though beaten, unsighted, by a first-minute Johnny Morrissey cross that sneaked inside the far post, he remembers âone of the best games of my career. I made some great saves and took that self-confidence with me into the shoot-out.â Footage of the evening, from the mud-caked kits to Marlboro and Cinzano pitchside ads, offers a colourful flavour of a different era. Gladbachâs players are wearing yellow socks borrowed from Everton to avoid a colour clash.
Kleff recalls having âno informationâ about the opposition penalty takers. âYou can have a cribsheet in your sock but it doesnât change anything. Iâm a goalkeeper and I have to stop the ball. I have to try and put off the taker, and not commit myself for as long as possible.â Predating Bruce Grobbelaarâs jelly-legged antics during the 1984 final for Liverpool, Kleff wobbled his legs in an attempt to put off Royle and then saved the kick down to his right.
âIâd always said to myself that a right-footer â so that he doesnât have to open up his body â Â would shoot to his left, my right,â explains Kleff. It helped, he adds, that he had foiled Royle several times already, notably with two terrific reflex stops from headers. âI got the impression that he was nervous.â
It is five decades ago now but Wolfgang Kleff is still not allowed to forget the night he created a football first. âOlder fans who lived through that time talk to me about it,â says the 74-year-old. âItâs part of the history of Borussia Mönchengladbach.â
The âitâ? The first save by a goalkeeper in a European Cup penalty shoot-out. It came on the night of 4 November 1970 â exactly 50 seasons ago â at Goodison Park in Liverpool. The man he foiled, Joe Royle, is not allowed to forget it either. âNow and again, if you go to an Everton do, thereâll be some smartarse there who wants to ask me about the Mönchengladbach penalty,â quips the former centre-forward, whose kick was the first of that inaugural shoot-out after two 1-1 draws between the champions of England and Germany in their 1970/71 second-round tie.
Prior to that summerâs adoption of the shoot-out by FIFA, European ties had been settled by replays and coin tosses; Celtic reached the 1970 final via the latter, after a 3-3 aggregate draw with Benfica in the second round. Now this new method came into effect, settling the European Cup Winnersâ Cup first-round tie between HonvĂ©d and Aberdeen in September before this eventful evening on Merseyside.
For Kleff, the home leg in Germany had been noteworthy for a save he did not make: Howard Kendallâs shot from distance eluded him in a moment of distraction prompted by toilet paper thrown from the crowd. âI was trying to roll it up,â he says with a laugh. âI then threw it away and⊠goal!â Â
Kleff had a better night at Goodison. Though beaten, unsighted, by a first-minute Johnny Morrissey cross that sneaked inside the far post, he remembers âone of the best games of my career. I made some great saves and took that self-confidence with me into the shoot-out.â Footage of the evening, from the mud-caked kits to Marlboro and Cinzano pitchside ads, offers a colourful flavour of a different era. Gladbachâs players are wearing yellow socks borrowed from Everton to avoid a colour clash.
Kleff recalls having âno informationâ about the opposition penalty takers. âYou can have a cribsheet in your sock but it doesnât change anything. Iâm a goalkeeper and I have to stop the ball. I have to try and put off the taker, and not commit myself for as long as possible.â Predating Bruce Grobbelaarâs jelly-legged antics during the 1984 final for Liverpool, Kleff wobbled his legs in an attempt to put off Royle and then saved the kick down to his right.
âIâd always said to myself that a right-footer â so that he doesnât have to open up his body â Â would shoot to his left, my right,â explains Kleff. It helped, he adds, that he had foiled Royle several times already, notably with two terrific reflex stops from headers. âI got the impression that he was nervous.â
It is five decades ago now but Wolfgang Kleff is still not allowed to forget the night he created a football first. âOlder fans who lived through that time talk to me about it,â says the 74-year-old. âItâs part of the history of Borussia Mönchengladbach.â
The âitâ? The first save by a goalkeeper in a European Cup penalty shoot-out. It came on the night of 4 November 1970 â exactly 50 seasons ago â at Goodison Park in Liverpool. The man he foiled, Joe Royle, is not allowed to forget it either. âNow and again, if you go to an Everton do, thereâll be some smartarse there who wants to ask me about the Mönchengladbach penalty,â quips the former centre-forward, whose kick was the first of that inaugural shoot-out after two 1-1 draws between the champions of England and Germany in their 1970/71 second-round tie.
Prior to that summerâs adoption of the shoot-out by FIFA, European ties had been settled by replays and coin tosses; Celtic reached the 1970 final via the latter, after a 3-3 aggregate draw with Benfica in the second round. Now this new method came into effect, settling the European Cup Winnersâ Cup first-round tie between HonvĂ©d and Aberdeen in September before this eventful evening on Merseyside.
For Kleff, the home leg in Germany had been noteworthy for a save he did not make: Howard Kendallâs shot from distance eluded him in a moment of distraction prompted by toilet paper thrown from the crowd. âI was trying to roll it up,â he says with a laugh. âI then threw it away and⊠goal!â Â
Kleff had a better night at Goodison. Though beaten, unsighted, by a first-minute Johnny Morrissey cross that sneaked inside the far post, he remembers âone of the best games of my career. I made some great saves and took that self-confidence with me into the shoot-out.â Footage of the evening, from the mud-caked kits to Marlboro and Cinzano pitchside ads, offers a colourful flavour of a different era. Gladbachâs players are wearing yellow socks borrowed from Everton to avoid a colour clash.
Kleff recalls having âno informationâ about the opposition penalty takers. âYou can have a cribsheet in your sock but it doesnât change anything. Iâm a goalkeeper and I have to stop the ball. I have to try and put off the taker, and not commit myself for as long as possible.â Predating Bruce Grobbelaarâs jelly-legged antics during the 1984 final for Liverpool, Kleff wobbled his legs in an attempt to put off Royle and then saved the kick down to his right.
âIâd always said to myself that a right-footer â so that he doesnât have to open up his body â Â would shoot to his left, my right,â explains Kleff. It helped, he adds, that he had foiled Royle several times already, notably with two terrific reflex stops from headers. âI got the impression that he was nervous.â
âWe had practised,â remembers Royle, who had had a spot-kick saved in the previous round against Icelandâs KeflavĂk, before converting the rebound. âI didnât miss many but it wasnât a great penalty.â
The reaction of both men â before the norms of shoot-out behaviour were set â is intriguing to revisit. Royle crouches, crestfallen; Kleff receives congratulations from several track-suited colleagues. When Klaus-Dieter Sieloff then sends Andy Rankin, Evertonâs goalkeeper, the wrong way with Gladbachâs first kick, he is met by four back-slapping team-mates.
Evertonian Frank Keegan, a spectator in the Gwladys Street end at which events were unfolding, remembers that ânobody in the ground seemed sure what would happen next because nobody had seen a penalty shoot-out. Some were hurling abuse at Royle for missing, saying we were out. Others more informed were saying it was best of five.â
Kleffâs own focus, he concedes, could have been better. âAfter that first penalty my concentration went a little bit. I thought a little bit too much about the fact Iâd saved a penalty.â In fairness, he went the right way for Evertonâs second, but Alan Ballâs effort was too fierce. Herbert Laumen, scorer of Gladbachâs equaliser earlier that evening, then rolled their second attempt wide. Then Morrissey and Kendall for Everton, and Jupp Heynckes and Horst Köppel for Gladbach, all converted.
So, at 3-3, to the denouement. Kleff didnât even move as Sandy Brownâs kick sped into the net. That left Ludwig MĂŒller facing Rankin. âThe crowd began to chant his name loudly as he took his place in goal,â says Keegan, and moments later Rankin flew to his right to make the decisive save. âHe was a great reflex keeper,â notes Royle, adding with a chuckle: âThough how he got away with it⊠he was so far off his line.â Â
Evertonâs success did not set a pattern for Anglo-German shoot-outs. Indeed, Royle recalls questions about the nerve of one particular Gladbach player afterwards. âWhat we did comment on in the bath is that their so-called best player, GĂŒnter Netzer, didnât take a penalty. To have your captain not taking one⊠Alan Ball was all over it: âHeâs obviously bottled it.ââ
âI also wondered why GĂŒnter Netzer didnât take a penalty,â says Kleff, yet for him a night that ended in defeat had a lasting silver lining. âWhen books are written about the club, itâs in there. And I get recognition from fathers and grandfathers who associate my name with this game. Because I saved a penalty, I was the only winner!â
It is five decades ago now but Wolfgang Kleff is still not allowed to forget the night he created a football first. âOlder fans who lived through that time talk to me about it,â says the 74-year-old. âItâs part of the history of Borussia Mönchengladbach.â
The âitâ? The first save by a goalkeeper in a European Cup penalty shoot-out. It came on the night of 4 November 1970 â exactly 50 seasons ago â at Goodison Park in Liverpool. The man he foiled, Joe Royle, is not allowed to forget it either. âNow and again, if you go to an Everton do, thereâll be some smartarse there who wants to ask me about the Mönchengladbach penalty,â quips the former centre-forward, whose kick was the first of that inaugural shoot-out after two 1-1 draws between the champions of England and Germany in their 1970/71 second-round tie.
Prior to that summerâs adoption of the shoot-out by FIFA, European ties had been settled by replays and coin tosses; Celtic reached the 1970 final via the latter, after a 3-3 aggregate draw with Benfica in the second round. Now this new method came into effect, settling the European Cup Winnersâ Cup first-round tie between HonvĂ©d and Aberdeen in September before this eventful evening on Merseyside.
For Kleff, the home leg in Germany had been noteworthy for a save he did not make: Howard Kendallâs shot from distance eluded him in a moment of distraction prompted by toilet paper thrown from the crowd. âI was trying to roll it up,â he says with a laugh. âI then threw it away and⊠goal!â Â
Kleff had a better night at Goodison. Though beaten, unsighted, by a first-minute Johnny Morrissey cross that sneaked inside the far post, he remembers âone of the best games of my career. I made some great saves and took that self-confidence with me into the shoot-out.â Footage of the evening, from the mud-caked kits to Marlboro and Cinzano pitchside ads, offers a colourful flavour of a different era. Gladbachâs players are wearing yellow socks borrowed from Everton to avoid a colour clash.
Kleff recalls having âno informationâ about the opposition penalty takers. âYou can have a cribsheet in your sock but it doesnât change anything. Iâm a goalkeeper and I have to stop the ball. I have to try and put off the taker, and not commit myself for as long as possible.â Predating Bruce Grobbelaarâs jelly-legged antics during the 1984 final for Liverpool, Kleff wobbled his legs in an attempt to put off Royle and then saved the kick down to his right.
âIâd always said to myself that a right-footer â so that he doesnât have to open up his body â Â would shoot to his left, my right,â explains Kleff. It helped, he adds, that he had foiled Royle several times already, notably with two terrific reflex stops from headers. âI got the impression that he was nervous.â
