It didn’t start well. Leeds were beaten 3-0 in Stuttgart, and looked out of the tie heading into the second leg at Elland Road. But Howard Wilkinson’s side produced a remarkable response, winning the return fixture 4-1, only to be eliminated on away goals after the two legs finished level at 4-4 on aggregate.
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Leeds’ European run was then handed an unlikely reprieve. Stuttgart were found to have fielded four foreign players in the second leg, one more than the competition’s rules allowed at the time. The match was forfeited 3-0 to Leeds, turning the aggregate score to 3-3 and forcing a play-off at a neutral venue.
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That play-off was staged at Camp Nou in Barcelona, where Leeds won 2-1 to advance. Their reward was a second-round tie against Rangers, dubbed the “Battle of Britain,” which they went on to lose, ending their run in the very first edition of the rebranded competition.
Photo: Mike Hewitt/Allsport
