Aston: The Reds changed after Benfica victory
THE gleaming trophy, with those big ears, had pride of place in the dining room of the luxurious Hotel Russell in Bloomsbury as the Joe Loss Orchestra chimed along with ‘In the Mood.’
For United’s younger players, such as Brian Kidd and John Aston, winning the European Cup in 1968 was literally a life-changing moment, given the £2,000 bonus they each received.
The pair were paid £40-a-week, with a £20 bonus for every league point, but could now afford a one-off purchase far beyond their wildest dreams.
But that was far from their minds that night as they marked their historic achievement with a fairly low-key dinner with their wives in London.
Just 10 years previously, eight of the Busby Babes were killed in the Munich Air Disaster after United booked their place in the semi-finals of Europe’s most prestigious club competition.
But the magnitude of events, and the achievement of winning the European Cup for the first time, did not fully dawn on Aston until much later.
“I was very much aware that was the overriding passion of Sir Matt Busby,” the 70-year-old told M.E.N. Sport.
“But when Munich happened, I was at junior school. I was 10. It was only years later I realised how much it meant to Bobby Charlton, Bill Foulkes, Harry Gregg.
“The celebrations after at the Russell Hotel were somewhat muted. Bobby, Bill Foulkes... I think Munich was too close to them and they went to bed. The emotional drain on them was tremendous. I didn’t realise that at the time. It was a while later that I realised.”
Aston lined up at inside left on that special night at Wembley against Benfica and knew he was playing a few days before the final because of ‘the Denis Law situation,’ as he refers to his injury.
The 20-year-old was named man of the match for his performance in the 4-1 win, having set up Kidd’s third goal in extratime, and revelled in the final quarter of an hour, which he likened to ‘attack against defence.’
He said: “I think in football there is a very thin line between success and failure and I’m just on the right side of success.” Aston’s medal, which is ‘the size of a postage stamp,’ is kept in a bank because the boyhood United fan is not a ‘sentimental person when it comes to football.’ Winning the European Cup would prove the pinnacle of Aston’s career after he broke his leg just a few months later. By the time he recovered, things were very different. He said: “The whole club changed. It had come to a standstill. It had been like reaching the peak, getting to the top of the mountain and no one knew how to stay there or get back down again.” Aston went on to play for Luton, Mansfield and Blackburn before retiring in 1979 and following in the footsteps of his uncle by selling pet food. So, what is like to be the only European Cup winner at Glossop Market? “It’s either that or I stay at home watching television,” he said. John Aston