26 years since The Double
On 25 May 1996, Atleti won its ninth league title at the Vicente Calderón after beating Albacete 2-0. A title that joined that of the Copa del Rey, won on 10 April against Barcelona (1-0).
The 1995-96 season is engraved with golden letters in the history of our club. The team coached by Radomir Antic won for the first time in the history the league and the cup in the same season. A double that revolutionised Madrid with the great celebration through the streets of the capital, with Jesús Gil, then president, leading a procession of buggies that circulated until they reached the Neptuno fountain.
May 25 marked the culmination of a great season, in which Antic's team dominated the league from the start. On that last matchday, Atleti hosted Albacete, whom they beat 2-0, thanks to goals from Simeone and Kiko, a victory that made our team champions at home, in front of our wonderful fans.
Atleti won 26 games, drew 9 and lost 7, with a total of 75 goals scored and 32 conceded. Our top scorer in the league was the Bulgarian Penev, with 16 goals, while Molina was the goalkeeper who scored the fewest goals, winning the Zamora trophy.
A few weeks before winning the league title, our team had won the Copa del Rey, the ninth in the club's history, at the La Romareda stadium in Zaragoza by beating Barcelona in the final 1-0, Pantic scoring in extra time, in the 102nd minute. A Copa del Rey in which our team won seven games, drew three and only lost one.
Those two dates, 10 April and 25 May are engraved in Red & White history and were the culmination of an excellent season for the team coached by Radomir Antic, who recalled for our website four years ago what that campaign was like for him, on the 20th anniversary of that achievement.
