1971-1980
Santiago Bernabéu died in the 1970s. Before his death,
Miguel Muñoz left the team after coaching it for 14 years. The Club's 75th
Anniversary celebration didn't receive much support. The decade saw Real Madrid
play against Castilla in the final of the Spanish Championship as well as a
transitional period that followed Bernabéu's death.
UEFA Cup Winner's Cup finalists
Real Madrid made their debut in the no longer existent UEFA
Cup Winner's Cup in the 1970/71 season. They reached the final against Chelsea
by defeating Hibernians, Wacker Innsbruck, Cardiff City and PSV Eindhoven. Both
sides had to play the game twice at the Greek Karaikiris Stadium because the
first match -held on 19 May 1971- ended in a 1-1 draw and neither team was
capable of scoring the winning goal during overtime. The second clash took
place two days later and Chelsea won 2-1.
Arias Navarro doesn't approve the project for a new stadium
On 8 September 1973, Real Madrid announced their intention
of demolishing the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in order to build a new venue with
a capacity for 125,000 people and a parking lot beneath it for 8,000 cars.
Mayor Carlos Arias Navarro's refusal to reclassify the plot of land and the
letter by lawyer Luis Pascual Estevill against the project that was published
in newspaper ABC put an end to the project.
Miguel Muñoz's great period ends
Miguel Muñoz became coach of Real Madrid in 1960 when
Fleitas Solich left. He ended up winning nine leagues, two Cups of Spain two
European Cups and one Intercontinental Cup in 14 seasons. On 15 January 1974,
Santiago Bernabéu ended Muñoz's period "because he had been
suffering for too long". Luis Molowny, a man from the Club,
replaced a living legend.
Real Madrid look to the Balkans
After the 1974/75 season, Luis Molowny was replaced by the
Yugoslavian Miljan Miljanic. He signed on 5 July 1974 and from then onwards the
team played an unattractive game based on physical efforts and tactical order.
This system earned the team two Leagues and one Cup of Spain in three seasons.
Another Yugoslavian, Vujadin Boskov, took the reins of the team in 1979. He
coached them until half way through the 1981/82 season. He won the League and
the King's Cup in his first year as coach.
Prelude to the Great Recoveries
The Santiago Bernabéu Stadium lived one of its most glorious
nights on 5 November 1975. Real Madrid recovered from a 4-1 defeat in the first
leg of the Last 16 round of the European Cup against Derby County. At the end
of the second leg, the result was 4-1 for the Whites, which forced both teams
to play overtime. Santillana scored the winning goal; this was the prelude to
Real Madrid's Great Recoveries.
No support for the 75th Anniversary Celebrations
The 75th Anniversary Celebrations had little support from
the fans because of the team's bad results and Bernabéu's retirement to Santa
Pola due to ill health. A tournament was organised between the national teams
of Argentina and Iran, Moroccan side Mouloudia Chabia and Real Madrid. The little
support was evident in a half-full, tedious match between Real Madrid and
Argentina that the Whites won 1-0 thanks to a goal by Vicente del Bosque.
The Patriarch dies
Santiago Bernabéu died at his home on 2 Jericó Street on 2
June 1978 six days before his 83rd birthday. His death put an end to an
extraordinary 35-year Presidency at Real Madrid. Many condolences were received
and deposited at the Club. A memorial service was held on 3 June in his
village, Almansa, where he is buried.
Luis de Carlos takes office as President
After a brief period as interim President, Raimundo Saporta
called for elections. The Club's treasurer, Luis de Carlos, resigned in order
to run for President. 26 July 1978 was the deadline for candidates to apply in
order to run for office. De Carlos submitted 3,352 documents endorsing his
candidacy, while the rest -gynaecologist Campos Gil and florist José Daguerre-
didn't get the minimum number required in time. This called off the election
and Luis de Carlos was proclaimed President of Real Madrid.
The Whitest Cup final
On 4 June 1980, the Santiago Bernabéu hosted the Cup final
between Real Madrid and Castilla, the Club's second team, created on 21 July
1972. Castilla managed to defeat four First Division teams -Hércules, Athletic
Bilbao, Real Sociedad and Sporting Gijon- to get to the final of the Spanish
Championship. Real Madrid defeated Castilla -coached by the sorely missed
Juanjo- 6-1.
Best European team of 1980
France Football named Real Madrid the Best European Team of
1980. The jury took into account the two national titles the team won that year
-the League and the King's Cup- and the fact that they reached the semifinals
of the European Cup that season
Source : http://www.realmadrid.com
