May 25 is a date etched in the memory and hearts of all those who make up the great family of the Atlético de Madrid. Because on a day like today, 25 years ago, the rojiblanco team won the first and only double in their history.
After winning the Copa del Rey on April 10, 1996, on May 25 Atlético defeated Albacete in a packed Vicente Calderón to sign the ninth league. The goals of Simeone Y Kiko certified the superiority of the group then directed by Radomir Antic, which was the best of the season and won a well-deserved award.
Atlético had a fantastic championship, scoring 87 points, one more than now, but with four more games played, as there were 22 teams in the First Division that year. 26 victories, nine draws and seven defeats, with 75 goals in favor and 32 against, in a League that will also be remembered for being the first in which triumphs were worth three points.
The eleven that put in the fray Radomir Antic It was learned in a rush by all the mattress followers. Molina in goal, Geli, Solozabal, Santi Y Toni in defence; Vizcaino, Simeone, Roadman Y Pantic in the center of the field; Y Kiko Y Penev in attack. On the bench, men like Ricardo, Tomás, López, Roberto, Biaggini, Correa or Juan Carlos.
That course came out all round, with hardly any casualties, which allowed Antic to always bet on the same block, also favored by the fact that Atlético did not participate in any European tournament. Among the games to remember, the 3-1 against Barcelona at the Calderón, with a dreamy first half, the 1-3 at the Camp Nou (with the dribble of Roadman to Nadal and the goal of Robert) which meant the conviction that that League was going to be rojiblanca, the 2-1 at Salamanca on the penultimate day with a goal from Kiko in minute 84, the 1-1 in the penultimate in Tenerife with Aerie, then in the chicharrero box, missing a sung goal, and above all, that magical night against Albacete at the Calderón, which was small as few times, and which had in its stands the red-and-white glow of the best days.
25 years later, Simeone He is back at Atlético (it will be ten years) and has won two other leagues. But that May 26, 1996, the first came for a wide generation of mattress fans. The Atleti del Doblet celebrates a quarter of a century.
(embed) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IiJ-tXfJyzQ (/ embed)