After Real Madrid retained the European Cup and the English giants all flopped in Europe again, ROB DRAPER looks back at an intriguing season in the continent's elite club competition.
Real Madrid confirm they are the club that makes European Cup history
There is symmetry in the fact that the club which appropriated the original European Cup when it was conceived in 1955-56 is the club that becomes the first team to defend it in the Champions League era.
Prior to the broadening of the tournament in 1992, the competition drew from a much narrower pool of champion clubs, a lack of diversity which perhaps accounts for the fact that once a club had developed the upper hand – Ajax, Bayern, Liverpool, AC Milan – there weren't enough competitors to pull them down from their perch.