Europa League: Kluivert and Thuram lock horns in a generation sequel
Roma and Borussia Monchengladbach, clubs with distinguished hinterlands and a long back catalogue of great European nights, meet for the first time ever tonight, in perhaps the match of the round on Matchday 3 of Europa League.
Roma top Group J, Monchengladbach currently lead the Bundesliga but at stake for the visitors may well be their prospects of survival in the competition, their European form having been at odds with the thrilling start to their domestic campaign.
Unprecedented the fixture may be, but it has a special appeal for 1990s nostalgics. Check out the two stellar names on the expected teamsheets: Patrick Kluivert and Lilian Thuram.
Once upon time those names anticipated the purest of duels: Kluivert was among the most complete centre-forwards in the game at his peak, a European Cup winner in his teens with Ajax in 1995, and then leader of the line at AC Milan and Barcelona.
Thuram set peerless standards at centre-back or right-back, won the World Cup with France, and prizes galore with Monaco, Parma, Juventus, Barcelona and his national team.
To the various Thuram-Kluivert headto-heads of a generation ago, now add a sequel.
Patrick’s son Justin, 20, will be the left wing for Roma; up front for Monchengladbach will be Marcus, 22.
Lilian’s first-born was Bundesliga rookie of the month in September for his performances in the few weeks. Thuram junior has four goals and two assists since he joined the German club from Guingamp in the summer.
Meanwhile, an even-more-junior Thuram made his senior professional debut in France’s Ligue 1 in August.
Kephren, an anchor midfielder, is 18 and joined Nice in the last transfer window.
In the Netherlands, one Ruben Kluivert, 18 and a central defender, is targeting imminent promotion from the Under 19s of Dutch club, Utrecht.
Seriousness on racism
Barely a week after Uefa was confronted with a high-profile test of its capacity to tackle racism at stadiums – with several England players abused during the Euro 2020 qualifier in Sofia – its limp policing of the issue is set to come under fresh scrutiny in Slovakia.
Wolves are at Slovan Bratislava, who are serving the second match of a two-game behind-closeddoors penalty imposed because of abusive chanting and offensive banners during their home Europa League play-off against PAOK in August.
Yet, against Wolves, close to 20,000 spectators are expected in the national stadium, Slovan having offered tens of thousands of free tickets to children, through a loophole in the rules. Uefa’s punishment allows school parties to attend matches even under a stadium ban, and around 5,000 – with one adult supervisor per 10 minors – attended the last Europa League home match, against Besiktas.
“I’ve heard it’s a behind-closed-doors sell-out,” said Conor Coady, the Wolves captain. “It’s a bit mad.”
Wolves, whose supporters had waited 38 years for a European campaign, have responded by making most of their allocation of VIP tickets available to fans.
But there are only 200 of those. Well over a thousand Wolves loyalists travelled to Istanbul for the 1-0 win against Besiktas on Matchday 2.
Spain still reigns
La Liga has supplied six of the 10 winners of the Europa League since the competition was rebranded from the old Uefa Cup, and provided seven of its finalists.
No surprise then that Spanish clubs are setting the best pace so far in the 2019/20 edition. Sevilla, Europa League gold-medallists in 2014, 2015 and 2016, are on maximum points. So are Getafe, who, with victory against Basel could plant a foot in the knockout phase of a European competition for only the second time in their history. Espanyol, on four points from two matches, are at Group G leaders Ludogorets.
The most successful manager in Europa League history is feeling at home, too.
The Spaniard Unai Emery, architect of Sevilla’s triple champions, has his Arsenal on maximum points and with the best goal difference in the competition (seven scored, none conceded); his problem is that, as with last season, winning the Europa League already looks the best route to hauling Arsenal into the next Champions League, their domestic inconsistency hampering efforts to lodge themselves in the Premier League’s top four.
Clash of the day
Porto’s Pepe, toughest 36-year-old stopper in European football, versus Glasgow Rangers’ Alfredo Morelos, owner of five red cards in the last 15 months - and scorer of nine goals in his last 10 European outings.