Making history

 
Xavi, Iniesta and Puyol will represent FC Barcelona in the final of the European Championships. It has been 24 years since the club has had so many players in the final game of the tournament.
Three azulgranas will be hogging the limelight at the European Chmpionships which finishes in the Ernst Happel stadium in Vienna on Sunday. Xavi, Iniesta and Puyol have already passed into the history books of the Spanish national team and the history books of those internationals who wear the Barça shirt.

Euro 84 in France

It has been 24 years since Spain last reached the final of the European Championships, the same year that FC Barcelona last had as many representatives in the final. In the 1984 final between France and Spain, Miguel Muñoz’s side lost 2-0, with three azulgranas on the Parc de Princes in Paris: Francisco “Lobo” Carrasco, Víctor Muñoz and Julio Alberto.

Other finalists

In 2004, Deco got to the final with Portugal a few weeks after signing for Barça. In those championships, Portugal knocked out Holland, who had Gio van Bronkhorst, Michael Reiziger, Cocu, Davids, Overmars and Patrick Kluivert in Dick Advocaat’s side.

In fact, the ‘oranje’ side has been the national team with the highest number of Barça representatives to get so far in the European Championships. In the championships in Holland and Belgium, Kluivert was top scorer and the De Boer brothers, Bolo Zenden, Cocu, Overmars and Michael Reiziger all played.