Overview

• La Voz de Galicia marks the anniversary with a detailed retrospective and an interview with academy product Pablo Couñago, who joins club events commemorating the milestone today.
• Celta reached the final by eliminating Pellister 3-0 at home and 2-1 away, then defeating Aston Villa 1-0 in Vigo and 2-1 in Birmingham, with all goals in the Villa tie scored by Benni McCarthy.
• The two-legged final against Zenit was decided by a 2-1 first-leg win on August 8 through goals from Valeri Karpin and Juanfran and a 2-2 draw in Saint Petersburg on August 22 after late strikes by Karpin and McCarthy overturned a 2-0 deficit.
• McCarthy finished as Celta’s leading scorer in the competition with six goals and was widely credited as the standout performer of the campaign.
• Coach Víctor Fernández rotated his squad throughout the tournament, with goalkeeper Pinto playing every match and extended minutes for Doriva, McCarthy, Sergio Fernández, Pablo Coira, Couñago and Karpin, while Mostovoi featured only briefly.