Atletico Madrid will face against Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinal. There is only one precedent of confrontation between the two teams, and ended badly for the rojiblancos, although today it is remembered as something heroic.
They had sweated ink to get there. Not only they were imposed on the Liga Spanish last year , a feat already remarkable, but had to stop on the way to some of the best in Europe .
Galatasaray very tough in the first round, resolved in overtime; the only slightly more affordable Dinamo Bucharest later; the fearsome Red Star in the quarterfinals; and especially Glasgow Celtic, one of the giants of the time, it sold very expensive semifinal.
But there was the Atletico Madrid , cited the story in the old Heysel in Brussels, willing to take the first European Cup to his credit . Opposite, another rookie in these conflicts, but whose name commanded respect: Bayern Munich , with Beckenbauer, Müller, Maier and other people as talented as unpronounceable.
Respect, yes, but not fear, that the rojiblancos were far less lame . Was Queen , Don Miguel, the father of Pepe, covering the goal. Was Cacho Heredia , the Argentine tank, leading a defense as impregnable as the current one . He was Adelardo , the great captain, escorting a certain Luis Aragones in midfield. It was the swiftest Irureta with Garate , perhaps the most elegant football player Spanish football has seen, and the Spanish-Brazilian magic Ufarte on the front of attack. Despite the low (Ayala and Baker Diaz were sanctioned after the riots in Glasgow), the outfit led by Juan Carlos Lorenzo from the bench could trust his chances.
He also played 15 May, the day of San Isidro , patron of the city of Madrid. Thousands of Spanish fans, many of them immigrants, packed the stands of the Belgian stadium. Everything seemed propitious to shield the Bear and the Madroño reign on the continent. The Germans, of course, also craved victory and were not going to put anything easy. Hence, after a very tactical game and, why not say, somewhat boring, it was reached at the end of 90 minutes 0-0 for the first time in the history of the old European Cup.
The extension passed along the same path until a flash of genius would decant into the Spanish side. Foul on the edge of the area, skewed to the left of the goal Maier. Ideal for zapatón right - hander Luis Aragones. The Hortaleza settled the ball on the ground, took some career, kicked , and when the ball was still flying the barrier, luxury jumping for joy celebrating the goal, more cool than eight wearing the shirt was allowed. A second later, the ball is dug into the top corner.
With 1-0 on the scoreboard and only seven minutes left, the Atleti and looked winner . Bayern, wounded pride, strove to avoid such a glorious end to the locals as painful for them. In this that, seconds before the whistle craved, he dropped ball at his feet to Hans-Georg Schwarzenbeck central defender as powerful as difficult to name. He walked without anyone being able to stop them after two hours of football, and when he was forty meters from the goal of Queen gave a ball, to see what happened . It happened that he came the shot of his life, satin, next to the post, impossible to stop, and the match ended with a tie .
Louis himself would spend years reproaching himself not to have retained the ball in the corner to waste time and have left that mission Garate, "too good person", whom they stole it fast. The number 9 never forgave not have scored a second goal shortly before , despite the cramps just allow him to stand. Adelardo regret having gone to make another rival and have not been in place in the midfield, where perhaps could have hinder the pitcher. Miguel Reina suffers every time he remembers that failed narrowly to stop the shot . If it still hurts so many years later, at the time the pain had to be terrible.
They were, of course, the ideal conditions to face a penalty shootout, but if there had been, the Atleti would still have been able to entrust the fate that had just left. Unfortunately, at that time the habit of solving end from the spot was not yet widespread. The UEFA decided that the party had to repeat the same scenario, a couple of days later.
With tempers tatters after having been so close and have seen how escaped, this second assault was more of a slaughter in which the Bavarians, the same that formed the basis of the German world champion a few months later, no they had mercy. Two of Müller, two Hoeness , and the cup for the trophy room of the Olympiastadion. For history is, however, the feat of having got there and touching the sky for seven minutes.
