Howard Wilkinson was not in a celebratory mood ahead of Leeds United’s 100th European tie. Tony Yeboah’s hat-trick in Monaco had set up a UEFA Cup second round fixture against PSV, and a shootout between Yeboah and Ronaldo. Injury ruled O Fenomeno out of the first leg at Elland Road, but that didn’t lift Wilkinson’s spirits.

Leeds had just been beaten 3-0 by Arsenal at home, and Wilko had injuries of his own to worry about. Gary McAllister missed the defeat to Arsenal after playing into the second half of Scotland’s friendly against Sweden despite a knock to his ankle, and was a doubt until kick-off against PSV. “I think I nearly drove him berserk,” McAllister said, “because the reports he was getting from Stockholm suggested I would be in a wheelchair.”

Yeboah was racing with Ronaldo at the start of the 1995/96 season as two of Europe’s deadliest goalscorers. Tony had eleven by the middle of October, Ronaldo just one more. Against PSV, Yeboah was being tightly marked by Stan Valckx, the self-described wildman of Dutch football, who boasted in the build-up to the match: “If there was a World Boozers XI, I would be captain.”

The returning McAllister took only five minutes to calm Wilkinson down. After being on the receiving end of a two-footed tackle, he stood up to delicately curl the free-kick towards the penalty spot and onto Gary Speed’s head, and he glanced the ball into the bottom corner. David Wetherall followed its trajectory, celebrating by fighting with the net of the goal in front of the South Stand.

Even without Ronaldo, PSV could still rely on Luc Nilis, voted the league’s Footballer of the Year ahead of thirty-goal Ronaldo the previous season, who the Brazilian described as his favourite strike partner. Nilis created PSV’s equaliser for Ronaldo’s replacement Rene Eijkelkamp by controlling a goal-kick over Carlton Palmer’s head and nutmegging John Pemberton on his way to the edge of Leeds’ box.

By half-time, PSV were leading 3-1, courtesy of a deflected long-range shot, and a moment of impudence when Nilis flicked a free-kick into the air for Wim Jonk to volley into the bottom corner. Some fans in the Kop stood up to swear at the cheeky bastard, others rose to begrudgingly applaud his nerve. Leeds, meanwhile, were rueing misses from Yeboah and Brian Deane inside the six-yard box. Gary Speed had been taken off injured, replaced by Andy Couzens, whose first involvement was sliding through a PSV defender’s ankle.

The second half brought a Leeds fightback inspired by an unlikely source, Carlton Palmer wisely choosing power over precision when presented with space inside the area. Patience was required for an equaliser, Leeds waiting until twenty minutes from the end before goalkeeper Ronald Waterreus flapped at a cross and left his goal untended. McAllister took his time, letting Waterreus rush back to his near post, which allowed Leeds’ number 10 to chip the ball over his head and into the far corner the ‘keeper had just come from.

But pushing for a winner only left more space for Nilis, who stole the win with a brace in the final ten minutes, his first a left-footed volley from an angle calculated by the maths of Marco van Basten. Usually criticised for being dour and boring, Wilkinson was now being held up as an example of an English manager’s naivety. “It was a crazy tie for a European game,” he said afterwards. “It could have ended 7-6.” It wasn’t clear if he knew to which team. ⬢

(This article is free to read from TSB magazine 2022/23 issue 07. To buy paper copies or read more, click here)