10 Greatest British Performances In Champions League History

5. Anderlecht 1-4 Leeds United 2000/01 Second Group Stage

If Spurs took inspiration from anyone before and during their momentous debut season in the Champions League, it may have come from Leeds's fearless run to the semi finals of that competition 10 seasons previously. Following on from their acrimonious departure from the previous season's UEFA Cup to Galatasaray in the semi finals, David O'Leary's young and talented side looked to try and make the same impact on the more senior of the European competitions with a point to prove- that the UEFA Cup run wasn't a fluke and could be replicated in the Champions League. Managing to nab 2nd place in a group containing Barcelona and AC Milan went a long way in trying to justify that point, but would they be able to progress further in a 2nd group containing Spanish giants Real Madrid, Lazio and Anderlecht, scourge of Manchester United in the previous round at home. A 2-0 defeat to Real Madrid at Elland Road wasn't the ideal start O'Leary would've hoped for. Then came a win in Rome against Lazio courtesy of Alan Smith before a win over the Belgians at Elland Road leaving them well placed on 4 points before the reverse fixture at the Constant Vanden Stock in Brussels. In that aforementioned victory over Manchester United, Anderlecht triumphed 2-1 and topped Group G over the English Champions, but Leeds were determined to succeed where their rivals had failed and win in Brussels. Things got off to a perfect start as Alan Smith scored a brace and Mark Viduka netted to leave the Belgians stunned and reeling as the half time whistle blew with the Whites 3-0 up. Jan Koller did manage to pull the scoreline back a little, but the trusty and reliable Ian Harte converted from the spot to complete the 4-1 success. Even Real Madrid couldn't achieve what Leeds did and the fact that they triumphed away from home means that in my opinion that this victory is ranked over the subsequent 3-0 victory over Deportivo La Coruna in the 1/4 final 1st leg. Like the UEFA Cup campaign, the 1/2 final turned out to be the buffers on the Leeds train as Valencia triumphed 3-0 on aggregate.