31 May 1972 - Ajax Sets The Standard

On 31 May 1972, Ajax won the second of three straight European Cups, beating Inter 2-0 with both goals coming from Johan Cruyff.

The reigning European Cup champions, Ajax had already claimed a domestic double that season, winning both the Eredivisie and the KNVB Cup. Cruyff, the 1971 Ballon d'Or winner, had finished the season as the league's top scorer with 25 goals.

Inter, meanwhile, after winning the tournament in 1964 and 1965, were back in it for the first time since finishing as runners-up to Celtic in 1967, and were hoping to redeem their season after finishing a disappointing fifth in Serie A.

The two teams met at De Kuip in Rotterdam, where a partisan crowd of 61,354 gathered for the event. They were rewarded with what some commentators described as "Total Football's greatest moment," as the free-flowing and constantly-shifting Ajax side unlocked Inter's defensive catenaccio formation, with Cruyff scoring in the 47th and 78th minutes.

Ajax repeated as champions in 1973, then again in 1995, while Inter claimed a third title in 2010.

14 December 1986 - The Debut Of Dennis Bergkamp

On 14 December 1986, Dennis Bergkamp made his professional debut, coming on as a late substitute for Ajax against Roda JC.

Born in Amsterdam in 1969, Bergkamp joined the club's youth academy in 1981. He was 17 when he made that first professional appearance at home against Roda, as manager Johan Cruff subbed him in for Rob Witschge in the 66th minute. Ajax were already up 2-0 at the time and that turned out to be the final score.

The striker remained with the club for seven seasons, scoring 122 goals in 237 appearances across all competitions. Along the way, he won one Eredivisie title (1990), two KNVB Cups (1987, 1993), one UEFA Cup (1992), and one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup (1987) before moving to Inter for a transfer fee of £7.1 million.

He never settled at Inter and left after two seasons for Arsenal, where he regained his previous form. He went on to become one of the club's most highly regarded players, making 425 appearances and winning multiple league titles (1998, 2002, 2004) and FA Cups (1998, 2002, 2003, 2005) before his retirement in 2006.

20 November 1957 - Ajax Goes European

On 20 November 1957, Ajax made their first European Cup appearance, beating East Germany's SC Wismut in the Round of 16. They later went on to win the competition four times, including three straight titles from 1971 to 1973.

Ajax failed to qualify for the first two European Cups, but made it into the 1957-58 tournament by winning the Eredivisie the previous season. They were one of seven teams, including defending champions Real Madrid, to receive a bye in the first round, placing them directly into the Round of 16.

There, they faced East German champions SC Wismut, who had advanced out of the preliminary round with a coin toss after their playoff match against Gwardia Warsaw was halted after 100 minutes when the floodlights failed.

Wismut hosted the first leg and promptly fell behind to the visitors after a goal from winger Piet van der Kuil in the fifth minute. Wim Bleijenberg doubled the lead eleven minutes later, then van der Kuil struck again in the 64th minute. Wismut got a consolation goal in the 86th minute to set the final margin at 1-3 for Ajax.

Ajax won the second leg 1-0 one week later to advance to the quarterfinals where they fell to Hungarian side Vasas 2-6 on aggregate. Afterward, they became one of the most successful teams in European competition, winning the European Cup in 1971, 1972, and 1973, then again in 1995 (after it had been renamed the Champions League). They also finished as runners-up in 1969 and 1996.