The wonder years

RC Celta travel to face Real Sociedad on matchday 22 of the Liga BBVA – so what better moment for LFP.es to recall one of the most special encounters experienced by the two teams during the last decade. It came on 15 June 2003, with the celestes and the side from San Sebastian each fearlessly challenging in the upper reaches of the table. We step into our time machine to look back over this golden chapter in the histories of both clubs.

The game, which came on matchday 37, saw Real Sociedad sitting at the top of the Liga BBVA, very close to repeating the glory they had enjoyed at the beginning of the 80s. It was the side of players such as Javi De Pedro, Xabi Alonso, Nihat Kahveci or Darko Kovačević, a team that led the Liga BBVA for much of the campaign, fighting Real Madrid CF head-to-head for the title right to the very end. When they travelled to Balaídos that June, their championship bid was very much on.

At the time, Celta were not far behind. Under the stewardship of coach Miguel Ángel Lotina, they were fourth in the table, with Aleksandr Mostovoi directing the play, Gustavo López providing the spark and no-nonsense central defender Eduardo ‘Toto’ Berizzo, now Celta’s boss, the leader at the back. They were dreaming of the UEFA Champions League, something which months earlier had seemed a far-off fantasy.

On that day, the hosts’ stadium was packed out for a historic clash. Celta, spurred on by their fervent support, did not take long to go ahead. They did so courtesy of a lucky break. Mostovoi received the ball on the edge of the area and unleashed a drive that hit Edu, deceiving Sander Westerveld on its way in. The home fans were jubilant, the visitors looked to the heavens. The Champions League was within touching distance, the title was fading. All ears were close to radios to find out what was happening elsewhere.   

There was no change to the scoreline until shortly after the restart, when Mostovoi – the 'Tsar of Balaídos' – popped up from deep to produce an unstoppable header for 2-0. La Real then called on all the character of championship contenders, and were not long in cutting the deficit. De Pedro got to the byline and with his sweet left foot found Nihat in the six-yard area to beat Pablo Cavallero. With Real Madrid winning their fixture and set to leapfrog them into first place with a game to go, the txuri-urdin were up against it.  

Six minutes after the guests’ goal, Mido was on hand to snap up a loose ball in front of the posts and leave Celta on the brink of Europe’s top club competition.  It wasn’t easy for the Galicians. There were nerves, especially when Nihat made it 3-2 with six minutes to play. The result left Celta mathematically assured of finishing in the UEFA Champions League places and meant top spot was no longer La Real’s, with the Basques losing out on the title on the final day. Tears in San Sebastian, jubilation in Vigo. That’s how the action unfolded in that day’s Celta – Real Sociedad clash; a match-up that will be repeated this Saturday in the Liga BBVA.