Match summary
The 1992 Toyota Cup final brought together Sao Paulo and Barcelona, two teams who had never represented their continents before. And it was the Catalans, coached by Johan Cruyff, who took a quick lead when Josep Guardiola threaded a superb ball through for Hristo Stoitchkov to score (12'). The Brazilians were back on level terms soon enough, though, when Raï expertly finished off a move started by his powerful team-mate Muller (27').

Having only arrived in Tokyo three days before the match, Barcelona began to fade after the break as tiredness got the better of them. It came as little surprise, then, when Raï fired in the winner to seal Sao Paulo's first-ever Toyota Cup win.

And they were back in Japan the following year too, where they came up against European runners-up AC Milan. The Rossoneri had been beaten by Olympique de Marseille in the European Cup final earlier that summer, but the French outfit's federation suspended them on account of corruption in their league campaign.

The resulting clash has gone down in the annals of the game as one of the most spectacular matches in history. Sao Paulo went in at the interval a goal to the good thanks to Palhinha, who had been well-served by Cafu, but things really exploded into life in the second-half. Daniele Massaro equalised for Milan soon after the restart (48'), only for the pendulum to swing back in Sao Paulo's favour 11 minutes later when Leonardo fed team-mate Toninho Cerezo to net his side's second. Massaro was in superb form for the Italians, however, and he set up Jean-Pierre Papin with nine minutes remaining. The game then seemed to be heading inexorably towards extra-time, but Muller had the final say with a late strike that gifted Sao Paulo their second consecutive intercontinental win.

Key player, 1992
Younger brother of the great Socrates, Raï Souza Vieira de Oliveira was Sao Paulo's inspirational leader in the 1990s. Standing 1.89m tall and weighing 88 kg, he was a powerful and athletic player, but allied those qualities with an astonishing elegance and intelligence that saw him become captain of the Brazil team at just 22. In five-and-a-half years with Sao Paulo he scored 103 goals (including two in the 1992 Toyota Cup final), helping the club to a Brazilian championship title, three Sao Paulo state championships, two Copas Libertadores and the 1992 Toyota Cup. He left to join French side Paris Saint-Germain in September 1993, but was back to wear his old club's colours again in the summer of 1998.

Key player, 1993
Antonio Carlos Cerezo, more commonly known as Toninho Cerezo, was a tireless midfield general despite being 38 years of age when he was named Man of the Match for his performance in the 1993 Toyota Cup win over AC Milan (3-2)

Born in Belo Horizonte on 21 April 1956, Cerezo began his career with Atletico Mineiro and Sao Paulo before being called up by the Seleçao to contest the 1978 and 1982 FIFA World Cups TM in Argentina and Spain. Alongside Socrates, Falcao and Zico on Spanish soil, he featured in one of the most brilliantly-balanced midfields in football history. However, it was his mistake that helped Italy to victory (2-3) in the second round of that tournament.

He then took his talents to Italy for stints with Roma and Sampdoria, and he picked up a raft of titles before returning to Brazil in 1992 for a memorable final chapter with Sao Paulo. Toninho Cerezo called time on his career in 1994 and turned his hand to coaching, most notably working in Japan.

Coach
Tele Santana was the man behind the 'cultural revolution' at Sao Paulo. Widely regarded as one of the best coaches on the planet, he was always a leading advocate of attacking football, and hoped the spectators watching would take as much joy from the game as the players. A former player himself with Fluminense, Madureira, Guarani and Vasco de Gama, he nonetheless shone most brightly in the dugout, bossing Atletico Mineras gerais and Gremio, not to mention the Brazil team at the 1982 and 1986 FIFA World Cups.

Strangely enough, though, Santana came to Sao Paulo after a spell with the Saudi Arabian national side. But between 1989 and 1993 he won all there was to win with Sao Paulo on both the national and international stage, where his message had never been so well received.


Toyota Cup 1992
13 December 1992 in Tokyo
Sao Paulo FC beat Barcelona 2-1
Attendance:60,000 spectators (estimated)
Referee: Juan Carlos Loustau (ARG)
Goals: Sao Paulo: Rai (27', 78') Barcelona: Stoitchkov (12')
Sao Paulo FC: Zetti, Vitor, Ronaldo, Ronaldo Luiz, Adilson, Cafu, Pintado, Rai, Toninho Cerezo, Muller, Palhinha.
Coach: Tele Santana
Barcelona: Zubizarreta, Ferrer, Koeman, Eusebio, Bakero, Guardiola, Amor, Laudrup, Witschge, Stoitchkov, Begiristain.
Coach: Johann Cruyff
Man of the match: Rai (Sao Paulo FC)
Toyota Cup 1993
12 December 1993 in Tokyo
Sao Paulo beat AC Milan 3-2
Attendance: 52,275 spectators
Referee: Joel Quiniou (FRA)
Sao Paulo: Palhinha (19'), Toninho Cerezo (59'), Muller (88') Milan: Massaro (48'), Papin (81'),
Sao Paulo: Zetti, Cafu, Ronaldo, Valber, Andre, Toninho Cerezo, Dinho, Doriva, Leonardo, Palhinha, Muller.
Coach: Tele Santana.
AC Milan: Rossi, Panucci, Baresi, Costacurta, Maldini, Desailly, Albertini, Donadoni, Massaro, Papin, Raducioiu.
Coach: Fabio Capello
Man of the match: Toninho Cerezo (Sao Paulo FC)