Willie Miller says Aberdeen earned their place among the biggest names in world football with their European Cup Winners' Cup triumph in 1983.

The greatest day in the Pittodrie club's 110-year history is still cherished by the supporters, perhaps more so as their 17-year wait for a trophy lingers on.

Managed by Alex Ferguson, the Scottish side not only shocked Real Madrid to lift the trophy but also shot down German giants Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.

The defender said: "It's a huge achievement to lift any major trophy – but a European trophy is pretty special. I don't think we realised at the time how special it was. As the years have gone by, we realised it. We put Aberdeen's name on the map. When we travelled abroad, people knew who we were.

"We were just a little provincial club from Scotland. But we won a European trophy and that gives you pedigree. When you see that we are sandwiched in between Juventus and Barcelona on that cup, it sums up what we did. We didn't just win the trophy, we did it with style. We put out Bayern on the way and beat Real in the final, so that shows that we did it with style."

Aberdeen were forced to pre-qualify for the tournament but fought their way past the Swiss side Sion in the Preliminary Round before knocking out Albania's Dinamo Tirana, Lech Poznan of Poland, Bayern and then Belgians Waterschei Thor on their way to the final.

But for Miller, it was their two-legged triumph over the German Cup winners from Munich that convinced him they were real contenders for the trophy.

"We definitely went in thinking we could win the final," said the former Scotland defender of his side's meeting with the Bernabeu team.

"The mindset in those days was that the German sides were the top dogs in Europe. The Bundesliga was huge. They had one of the best international teams in the world and some of the best players. We always felt that if we could overcome the Germans, which we did in the quarter-finals, then we would have a chance of lifting the trophy.

"Strange as it may seem, we went into the game with Real feeling like we were the favourites, even though we were classed as the underdogs. We were confident that we could do it and on the night we were by far the better team."

The victory in Sweden was manager Ferguson's first continental cup success and was quickly followed up seven months later when European champions Hamburg were beaten 2-0 in the Super Cup final as Aberdeen became the only Scottish side to win two UEFA trophies.

That and three Scottish Premier Division championships convinced Manchester United he was the right man to replace Ron Atkinson as Old Trafford manager three years later.

But Miller is in no doubt it was the night of glory in Gothenburg that made all his later success in England possible.

He said: "It was significant in that it was a magnificent achievement. It caught attention, and it caught the attention of Manchester United. We are talking about taking a small provincial club that had no history of dominating in Scotland, with little resources, to the top of European football and then beating the European Cup holders the next season. That was bound to grab the attention of big clubs."