The night Alex Ferguson’s Aberdeen rocked Real Madrid: 40 years on

“N othing short of a miracle” is how Sir Alex Ferguson has described the most astonishing victory of his managerial career. It came against Real Madrid but not during his 26-year spell at Manchester United. Thursday marks 40 years since Real last encountered defeat in a major European competition final: against Aberdeen in the Cup Winners’ Cup.

Ferguson achieved that 2-1 extra-time win with a group of young players who were a precursor for his “Class of 92” at United featuring Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Nicky Butt and the Neville brothers. These were Fergie’s first fledglings, and had injury and ill-fortune not hurt their careers, they could have soared to even greater heights.

What the Aberdeen players of 1983 experienced was an even more fearsome Ferguson than the one who eventually ended his career at Old Trafford. “He probably mellowed to a typhoon by then,” says Eric Black, the striker who scored Aberdeen’s opening goal against Real at the age of 19.

“He was a ferocious leader at that time, because he was trying to build a reputation. He was incredibly demanding and he created an atmosphere that was semi-confrontational, within the players as well, to ensure we had that winning mentality and he got the last percentage out of everybody.”

Real have competed in 10 European competition finals since their defeat by Aberdeen in Gothenburg: eight in the Champions League/European Cup, two in the Uefa Cup. What makes Ferguson’s team’s feat even more remarkable is the age of his side. Every Aberdeen player who featured in the final was 28 or under. But four young Scottish players stand out: the goalscorers Black and John Hewitt, 20; and starting midfielders Neale Cooper, 19, and Neil Simpson, the relative