game 2–0 and progressed to the next round. In 1973 Dinamo won their first International tournament. After beating Atlético Madrid and Benfica, the club won the Columbus's Caravela Trophy. In 1976 Nodar Akhalkatsi was appointed as Dinamo's head coach. It was under his leadership that Dinamo achieved greatest success. The club was referred to as the "Great Team" between 1976 and 1982, characterised by a mobile, fast and technical style of play. In this period Dinamo won the Soviet Cup for the first time in their history, convincingly defeating Armenian side Ararat Yerevan 3–0 in the final, with goals scored by David Kipiani, Piruz Kanteladze and Revaz Chelebadze. In 1978 the club won the Soviet Top League for a second time. Next year Dinamo won the Soviet Cup again by defeating Russian side Dynamo Moscow in the final. In 1979 the club played its first match in the UEFA European Cup tournament. In the first round Dinamo knocked out English side Liverpool, at the time one of the strongest teams in European football. After losing the first match at Anfield 1–2, Dinamo comfortably beat the opponent 3–0 in Tbilisi and advanced to the next round, where they were eliminated by German champions Hamburg. In the 1970s Dinamo also eliminated famous Italian sides Inter Milan and Napoli in European competitions. | | | Last Soviet days: 1980s The highlight of Dinamo's history was winning the 1980–81 European Cup Winners' Cup, including knocking out clubs like West Ham United (4–1, 0–1) and Feyenoord Rotterdam (3–0, 0–2), and beating East German side Carl Zeiss Jena 2–1 in the final on 13 May 1981. Vitaly Daraselia and Vladimir Gutsaev scored goals in the final. Helmut Schön, 1974 FIFA World Cup winning coach said: "It is to be said directly, Dinamo deserved the victory. This team has top-quality performers." Next year in 1982 as reigning champions Dinamo advanced to the semi-finals in the Cup Winners' Cup tournament, where they were eliminated by Belgian side Standard Liège. In the 1980s numerous skillful players appeared on the team, but for various reasons they were not able to do their best: Grigol Tsaava, Mikheil Meskhi (Junior), Otar Korghalidze, Gia Guruli, Mamuka Pantsulaia, Merab Jordania, Levan Baratashvili and many other talented players. In 1983 a crisis began. It was hard for the club to go through the first rounds of the Soviet Cup. They also performed poorly in the