Real Madrid? Ajax? Liverpool? Ranking Europe's greatest football dynasties

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Those promising youngsters won the title and then went all the way in the European Cup, beating Barcelona in the 1961 final.That summer, a teenage Eusebio also joined Guttmann's squad and steered them to European glory once more, seeing off Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-final before beating the great Real Madrid in the competition's showpiece.The legendary Ferenc Puskas scored a first-half hat-trick for the Spaniards, but Eusebio netted twice after the interval to seal Benfica a second successive crown.Guttmann, buoyed by his remarkable success, left the club after not being offered the pay rise he felt he deserved and the curse the Hungarian boss supposedly put on the club - that they would not win another European trophy for 100 years - has become fable.Whether the often-disputed story is true or not, the Lisbon giants have not landed another since - losing eight European finals, including three in the 1960s. In between, the Rossoneri won back-to-back European Cups in 1989 and '90, then thrashed Cruyff's Barcelona 'Dream Team' in 1994 after defeat in the final the previous season.

Liverpool 1976-1984In an era of English dominance on the continent, winning seven of eight European Cups between 1977 and 1984, Liverpool's 'Boot Room' boys led the way.The Reds won four of those, Nottingham Forest - who could argue they also deserve a spot on the list - went back-to-back and Aston Villa completed the haul.Liverpool's European pedigree really began when Bill Shankly's side won the Uefa Cup in 1973, the Reds doing it again three years later under Shankly's former assistant Bob Paisley. Paisley was able to deliver the biggest prize of all the following season in Rome and, after Kenny Dalglish was brought in to replace Hamburg-bound Kevin Keegan, retained the European Cup at Wembley against Club Brugge in 1978 - the Scottish forward netting the winner.Three years later, after Brian Clough took Forest to the top, Liverpool were European champions again when Alan Kennedy's goal downed Real Madrid in Paris.Perhaps most impressive is how the Anfield outfit were able to maintain that success through a series of managers.

Real Madrid 1955-60When it comes to dominance, no one compares to the Real Madrid side who stormed to five successive European Cup triumphs after the competition began in 1955. With the tournament in its infancy, it was perhaps not considered as imperative by certain nations compared to how Champions League participation dominates clubs' thoughts today, but Real Madrid's style and success helped to alter perceptions.Alfredo Di Stefano, already a world star by the time Real beat Reims in the inaugural final, was an integral part of the Spanish giants' success, the legendary Paco Gento likewise a stalwart (he also won a sixth European Cup in 1966).Then, in 1958, Madrid added Hungarian genius Ferenc Puskas following his two-year ban for refusing to return to Budapest after the revolution in 1956.