Helmut Dukadam: The legend of Steawa, the four penalty in the final with Barcelona and the glorious ending

Helmut Dukadam died at the age of 65, with her legendary goalkeeper combining his name with the legendary Champions Cup final in 1986. His sudden withdrawal from, health problems, but also conspiracy theories. She scattered the grief in European and mostly Romanian football, with the great goalkeeper who was nicknamed “the hero of Seville” making the journey to heaven having left behind an important legacy, which will be remembered forever. Legendary goalkeeper Helmut Dukadam was born in the village of Semlats in Arad, on April 1, 1959. He began his football career in 1975 in Arad, with him a few years later receiving a transfer for the country’s “great” team, Steawa Bucharest. There he competed from 1983 to 1986, managing to write a mythical story and win with the club the Champions Cup (now Champions League) in a mythical final made in Seville. However Dukadam’s career instead of taking an upward course and wearing the jersey of some “great” European club of the time, had a huge gap, as a serious health problem, resulted in a temporary pause. The night that from a mortal he became a god One night however Helmut Dukadam’s name would stay forever in the eternity of Steawa and be remembered 38 years later. Specifically on May 7, 1986 in Seville, in the final of the Champions Cup between Barcelona and Steawa, the unknown until then Dukadam became a hero, repeling 4 penalty executions! After a dramatic game that ended tied without goal, the winner was destined to be judged on Russian roulette, where the Romanian goalkeeper gave a mythical performance and with 4 reprisals in 4 Catalan hits gave the trophy to his team. The final 2-0 resulted in Bucharest “burning” with Emmerich Genei footballers writing the most golden page in club history. The serious health problem Dukadam’s epic appearance in the 1986 final caused the interest of major European teams, such as Real Bettis, Seville, but also Panathinaikos, however Romanian’s career never took off, as a serious health problem caused him to retire prematurely from football. Specifically Dukadam was diagnosed with a thrombosis in his right hand in the summer of 1986 and could even be mutilated! However, for his good fortune this never happened, yet a brilliant career ended in such a glorious way. Gradually Dukadam’s problem was restored, with him returning to active action wearing the Wagnerul Arad jersey, a group of Romania’s second division. After two seasons and with the health problem having heavily affected him, Dukadham decided in 1991 at 32 years to stop football, hanging his gloves. Some years later Romanian revealed that he was taking 18 to 22 pills a day to deal with his problems, with the annual cost of the lawsuit reaching 8,000 euros! Conspiracy theories Dukadam’s name became so well known, that several urban myths were released and reported to have disappeared! In particular, the legend states that Romanian received a gift from Real Madrid president Ramón Mendoza, as with his appearance he humiliated hated Barcelona. However, at a meeting of the same as Nikos Ceausescu (son of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and president of Steawa), who asked him to deliver the car, Dukadam refused and this resulted in his fingers breaking. This resulted in the career of “a hero of Seville” stopping prematurely. This version dominated Romania for several years, however Dukadham never confirmed that legend, stressing that all this was rumor. Life outside football On March 25, 2008, Dukadam was awarded by Romanian President, Traian Basescu, with the “Meritul Sportiv” medal for his contribution to the 1986 European Cup conquest. Two years later, on 11 August 2010 he was appointed honorary president of Steawa Bucharest, leaving the club 10 years later. Dukadam worked as a border guard in the hometown, while he “opened” and a football school. However, the serious financial problems he faced forced him to sell most of his property. In 2003 he tried his luck in the US, but after a year he returned to Romania with his family, without being able to adapt to America’s life. Helmut Dukadam had been facing serious health problems in recent years and had recently undergone open heart surgery, from which he seemed to be recovering. However on Monday morning (2/12/24) he left his last breath in a military hospital, immersing football friends in distress. Dukadam throughout his life has been a symbol of race, loyalty and heroism, with his participation in the legendary victory of Steawa Bucharest in the Cup Champions in 1986 making him one of the greatest goalkeepers in football history.