konkov strike enough for ussr published: friday 3 october 2003, 9.53cet
the soviet union reached a third final in four attempts thanks to anatoliy konkov's goal and evgeni rudakov's late penalty save.
the soviet union reached a third showpiece in four editions of the uefa european championship courtesy of a 1-0 win against hungary in brussels.
in the latter stages for a fourth time in succession, the ussr went one better than they did in italy four years earlier. hungary played all the football on this occasion but the ussr's tactical approach – one centred around retreating into a solid defensive unit – reaped reward.
they were aided by an unusually subdued performance from ferenc bene as well as half-chances being spurned by the likes of lajos kü, antal dunai and miklós páncsics. however, behind to anatoliy konkov's effort, a deflected shot which somehow made its way through a crowded goalmouth following a corner, hungary looked to have earned a late reprieve.
five minutes remained when revaz dzodzuashvili's infringement was adjudged to be a penalty. sándor zámbö took the spot kick but evgeni rudakov guessed correctly, diving to his left to preserve his team's advantage.
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