Perhaps the most accurate summary was given by the then Barcelona coach, César Luis Menotti: "I had never seen such rebelliousness in some footballers." It was an inconceivable situation that fortunately ended well for Barça, with victory in the Cup final against Madrid (2-1), played at La Romareda on June 4, 1983.
Four days earlier, on Tuesday, May 31, a tribute match was held in Munich for Paul Breitner, a former Madridista by the way. A festive day for Bayern and a world team to which Santillana was invited, by the whites, and none other than Schuster and Maradona by the Blaugrana. Madrid refused and Barça, too. He could not allow his two cracks to abandon the club's discipline, even for a few hours, for a tribute to a player with no relation to the entity and in the same week as a Barça-Madrid that could mean the only title of the season for the Blaugrana. [Then there were two, they also won the League Cup, and again against Madrid]. Barcelona sent two communications to Bayern, denying the attendance of their figures, but did not receive the slightest response.
In the press of the time nobody gave credit to the sudden friendship between Maradona and Breitner. Or to the reconciliation between him and Schuster, with whom he had had bitter controversies. Even so, the case was resolved after a long meeting between Menotti and the two cracks: no traveling to Munich. However, 24 hours later, six days before the final, the cracks were stubborn: we go to the tribute. The pulse was tremendous, due to the club's resounding refusal and the lackadaisical response of the players, strangely interested in that inopportune game. Maradona told the press that "neither Núñez nor any of the pimps around him make me change" and Schuster warned: "If we win the final, no one shakes my hand." Both criticized that the president did not show his face. Menotti's intervention had been useless.
After the day of the tribute, without the two Barcelona players, the situation became even more entrenched. Two days before the trip to Zaragoza, the president of the Generalitat, Jordi Pujol, went to the Camp Nou to greet the players and convey encouragement. That final was a priority objective, and that TVE decided at the last minute to delay it until 10:15 p.m. so that it would not coincide with the Eurobasket final, Spain-Italy.
Pujol spoke with Maradona and others, but could not do so with Schuster, who slipped away as soon as he could. Then he said provocatively: “Pujol? I don't know why he came, it doesn't matter much to me”. And even more gasoline: at the exit of the Camp Nou Maradona's car, which he was driving accompanied by his representative Jorge Czysterpiller, was assaulted by a group of fans who hit the vehicle and the windows shouting "pesetero".
The leaks that could be expected ended up drawing the rest of the scenario and discovering the extraordinary interest that united Maradona and Schuster with Breitner. In the first place, that some of the juiciest television contracts (especially in South America, Japan and two Persian Gulf countries) depended on the presence of Maradona, with the commitment that he play at least one hour to take 20%. Among the organizers was Puma, Maradona's sponsor, and also Toyota, which promised a luxury vehicle for the cracks if they posed in a publicity photo accompanied by Zico and Rummenigge. For the Blaugrana the party was a quick profit, about 5 million pesetas was calculated then, for a little trip in a private plane and an hour of entertainment.
It is no less true that despite everything, both Schuster and Maradona had an outstanding intervention in the Cup final. The first Blaugrana goal, the work of Víctor, came from the boots of the Argentine, who once again had to endure an intolerable persecution of white defenders. And the one of victory, by Marcos in the 90th minute, led to the famous cut of the German's sleeves. Unforgettable.
