 The club finished second in the league once more and were losing semi-finalists in the FA Cup, but the real success of the season was victory in the UEFA Cup.Beating Michel Platini's AS Saint-Étienne 4–1 at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in the quarter-finals and a 2–0 aggregate victory over 1.FC Köln in the semi-final led Ipswich to the club's first European final, played over two legs against AZ 67 Alkmaar.