Memories Of Munich

Paul Miles speaks to the ever-popular Chris Hughton, who recalls his previous clashes with Bayern Munich and continues to reminisce on his Spurs career with fondness.

- Paul Miles

“I remember the fog-bound game, difficult to forget that one!” Chris Hughton is recalling our back-to-back European ties with Bayern Munich in the early 1980s. One ended in foggy disappointment, the other in pure jubilation. No guessing which he prefers, even if he did score in Munich!

Let’s start in the European Cup Winners’ Cup in the 1982/83 season. We had the better of the first leg at the Lane, Steve Archibald netted early, we missed chances, Paul Breitner levelled and Garth Crooks was denied by a point-blank save from Jean-Marie Pfafflate on.

The fog in the second game was so bad, Stuart Jones, reporting for The Times, described the scene as ‘a perfect back drop for an Alfred Hitchcock production’. A check on YouTube shows this was no exaggeration! Anyway, we went down 4-1. Bayern were 3-0 up and clear when Chris finished off a fine move for his first European goal. “I think it’s fair to say if it was a league game, it might well have been called off,” reflected Chris. “We played well in the first leg, perhaps deserved more. The return was a difficult night for us.”

Fast-forward a year and we had a season to remember in the UEFA Cup in 1983/84, culminating with us winning the final at the Lane after beating Anderlecht on penalties. In the third round, we faced our old rivals from Bavaria again.

This time, we played in Munich first, our hearts broken by Michael Rummenigge’s late goal. This time, we turned it around. We did everything but score in the first half at the Lane before Archibald broke the deadlock on 50 minutes. Bayern staged a comeback but we kept them at bay and then Mark Falco struck from Glenn Hoddle’s pass to send us through. Six months later, Graham Roberts lifted the trophy.