I remember perfectly how it was that cold January afternoon in 1997. Today it has been 24 years old, they have flown by. He Athletics of Antic (DEP), which months before had conquered the historic Doublet rojiblanco, faced the Madrid of Capello convinced to go over it. He Calderon it roared like never before, something that always happened when Madrid went there, the Vikings from the north of the capital, “the ones you took from us Hugo Sanchez and Paco Llorente“… This environmental animosity further enraged a team led emotionally by a boy who was 19 years old at the time, Raul Gonzalez, who released his spectacular scoring account two seasons before precisely against Atleti (the first of his 323 targets in white), in whose quarry he had taken his first football steps until his temporary extinction to save expenses, by decision of the late Jesús Gil.
Raúl put the 1-1 at halftime and everything went smoothly until in minute 67 Mijatovic he expelled himself with an angry protest to the lineman. Iturralde, who was the field referee, showed him the way to the changing rooms. Far from wrinkling for playing at a disadvantage, Madrid became huge. I will never forget the final ten minutes. Pure merengue symphony that ended up silencing the Calderón boiler. Especially with the goal of Raúl. The famous goal in which he left behind Geli to later face Superlopez, who broke his waist twice to end up beating Molina through an unlikely hole. I was in the Press Tribune and I could only clench my knuckles hard on my desk and restrain myself to avoid noise, but on the inside it was one of the goals that I have celebrated the most in my life. Raúl's mad dash behind the Atlético goal angrily shouting the goal in front of the Atlético Front has remained for the Vikings as one of the great Madridista moments in the eternal rivalry of the derby.
Then, Seedorf and Victor They completed an epic win with only ten men that those enlisted in the Merengue troops will never forget. 24 years have passed. Raúl is the current coach of Castilla, Juanma López is a listed agent for footballers (he leads Morata, Nacho, Diego Llorente and Dani Olmo, among others), Geli is the president of Girona and Molina is the sports director of the Spanish Football Federation . The four of them can count on one day that they assisted Raúl's great goal at the Calderón against his exes. Unforgettable.