The career of Fernando Torres as coach of the Atlético de Madrid Youth starts with curiosity. The schedule of the Division of Honor, published today by the RFEF, has provided a derby between Atlético and Real Madrid for the first day of the championship. The duel will be played on the weekend of September 4 and 5 on rojiblanco terrain. The match will also mean the debut in an official match of Hernán Pérez, Michu's brother, on the youth team's bench. The second round match (matchday 18) will be played in Valdebebas on the weekend of January 22-23.
The two great teams from the capital will be part of group V of the Youth Honor Division together with 18 other teams for one more season, since the category continues in a transition period of adjustment after the season without decreases that was decreed by the pandemic. Along with Real Madrid and Atlético there will be nine other teams from Madrid (Alcorcón, Rayo Majadahonda, Getafe, Unión Adarve, Rayo Vallecano, Leganés, Trival Valderas, Fuenlabrada and Las Rozas), four Castilian and Leonese (Real Valladolid, Cultural Leonesa, Burgos CF, Gimnástica Segoviana) and three Extremadurans (Flecha Negra, La Cruz Villanovense and Badajoz).
On the last day, scheduled for the last weekend of May, Madrid will visit Getafe and Atlético will visit Flecha Negra.
The season will end later than usual by the new format of the Copa del Rey for the category, which this next season will be played by the first four classified in each group at the end of the first round (ends on January 9) and the four best teams among those occupying the fifth position. The youth KO tournament will be played between January and mid-April in single-game qualifiers from the round of 32. The semifinals and the final will be played in final four from April 13 to 17, coinciding with Holy Week.
The Champions Cup, meanwhile, will maintain the modified format that has already been applied this season. The quarterfinals will be played in a double game and the semifinals and final, in a single game at headquarters with format final four. As usual, the tournament will be played by the champions of each of the seven groups and the best second.
Complete schedule of each of the Junior Honor Division groups:
Group 1 – Group 2 – Group 3 – Group 4 – Team 5 – Group 7
(The group 6 schedule is released on Thursday, August 5.)