But just a few days later, North Korea showed a glimpse of the brilliance to come, by drawing 1-1 with Chile. This wasn’t supposed to happen, and there was an upsurge in local enthusiasm for the plucky underdogs. As a Times journalist put it, in the typical tone of the time, “Rarely have supporters taken a team to their hearts as the football followers of Middlesbrough have taken these whimsical Orientals.”

And then came the Italy game. As one local Middlesbrough fan later recalled, “Everyone had gone along to see a class Italy side. But the game was turned on its head.”