[youtube=http://youtu.be/GN1HYU10RA8]
A first major tournament triumph, long overdue, finally came Holland’s way in Euro 1988. The finalists had already met in the group stages with the USSR winning a tight game 1-0. The final was similarly tense (and not a great spectacle, truth be told), but the difference between the two matches was that Holland’s sensational striker Marco Van Basten was left out of the first match but will never be forgotten for his role in the final. His impressive header set up captain Ruud Gullit, who put his side in front after thirty minutes. But it was the goalĀ Van Basten scored in the second half that made this game legendary, and has arguably never been matched in a final. Eight meters from goal and close to the touchline, Van Basten appeared out of options until he lashed a quite incredible volley over the helpless head of Rinat Dasayev, who was generally regarded as the best goalkeeper in Europe.