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Fabregas, Cesc |
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Handanovic, Samir |
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Messi, Lionel |
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Baptista, Julio |
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Robben, Arjen |
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Walcott, Theo |
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Gourcuff, Yoann |
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Crespo, Hernan |
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Gallas, William |
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Higuain, Gonzalo |
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The 1954 World Cup in Switzerland, the first since the conclusion of World War 2, was marked by the magnificient performance of the Hungarian national team which made it all the way to the finals in a meteoric performance which sadly turned into one of the sports' most tragic disappointments.
Between the years 1950 and 1954, the Hungarian national team played 34 matches with an astonishing record of 31 wins and 3 draws. During this period, the Magical Hungarians remained undefeated, while history will never forget two friendly matches with the "founders of football" – the English national team. Hungary shocked crowds at Wembley in 1953 by beating the home team with an incredible performance, which saw Eastern Europeans scoring six goals in front of a public convinced that English players were still a step ahead of their counterparts from the continent. This shock was compounded a few weeks later when an encore of the clash lead England to yet another embarassing defeat with the Hungarians outplaying their opponents yet again in Budapest. An astonishing seven goals were scored by the Hungarians, resulting in a 7:1 defeat for their famous opponents, a result which is even today considered the most painful defeat the English national team has ever suffered.
Many in the English public proclaimed the Budapest debacle a national tragedy, having still not recovered from their shock loss at Wembley, their first such defeat against a team from outside the UK.
A year later, the World Cup was coming home to Europe – hosted for the first time in "neutral" Switzerland.
Some who witnessed it believe that the semifinal match between Hungary and Uruguay remains one of the mundial's all-time classics. In a thriller that finished with yet another Hungarian win (4:2), the Eastern Europeans put on a performance showing all the poetry football can offer, affirming their status as a so called "Golden Team".
