Aston Villa heroes look back at their 1982 European Cup glory

The most magical journey in Aston Villa’s history began with an encounter with Miss World in an Icelandic nightclub and finished with the game’s ultimate prize disappearing from a pub.

Aston Villa’s victory over Bayern Munich in the European Cup final in Rotterdam on this day, 1982 is immortalised on a banner in the North Stand at Villa Park. ‘Shaw, Williams prepared to adventure down the left, there’s a good ball played in for Tony Morley… Oh, it must be!... And it is! Peter Withe!’ — Brian Moore’s commentary provided the soundtrack to the moment that would define these players’ lives but there was a richness and depth to this 40-year-old story that went far beyond those unforgettable words.

The trophy was stolen from the Fox Inn near Tamworth, where Gordon Cowans and Colin Gibson had taken it to show off to fans, before being handed to police hours later by its remorseful thief. That vignette alone would be good enough to carry this tale, yet it was just one of many.

Villa changed managers mid-campaign, with the forceful, title-winning boss Ron Saunders replaced by the mild-mannered Tony Barton, who went from assistant manager and chief scout to European Cup winner in three months.

They went behind the Iron Curtain to defeat Dynamo Berlin and before playing Dynamo Kyiv, stayed in a hotel so poor there were cockroaches inside the bread rolls. There was violence in the stands as Villa met Anderlecht in Brussels, and rookie goalkeeper Nigel Spink — one of the greatest substitutes of them all — helped deliver victory in the final. Pre-match tots of brandy in the dressing room carried them to glory at home and abroad.

Even if Villa reach those heights again, the corporate phenomenon that is the Champions League means it