Paco Gento will be the first protagonist this afternoon in Altabix. Elche and Real Madrid will wear mourning for the great legend whose death Last Tuesday it hit world football. A minute of silence will be the last thing that happens before the ball starts to roll in what will be the third cup tie between the franjiverdes and whites.
The first was played in just three days, between April 5 and 8, 1962. It was in the round of 16 of the Cup, a knockout express before on the 12th Madrid was played in Liege their place in the final of the European Cup.
On that occasion Madrid traveled the day before and arrived in Alicante five hours late. At the head of the expedition were the directors Francisco Munoz Lusarreta and Luis de Carlos, Miguel Muñoz, the first coach, did not travel to the team’s controls. The leadership in the Altabix field went to José Morales Berriguete, Moleiro in the world of football.
Munoz was the London, where he saw the benfica qualify for the Tottenham for the European Cup final and thus be able to defend their title.
At 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 5, the tie began. Before half an hour Paco Gento sowed panic in the Elche defense. He left rivals along the way. He dribbled past Las Heras, the Elche goalkeeper, got rid of Quirant and Iborra after and gave a cross to roof to open the marker.
Shortly after it was Puskas he scored, but Elche did not give up and after 66 minutes they were able to equalize the match. The 2-2 lasted only seven minutes, which took people in launching a very hard left-footed shot against which he could do nothing The Heras. Throughout the match, Madrid’s 11 was a nightmare for Elche’s defense. And a joy for a stand from which his runs and dribbles were applauded.
The second leg proved what Juan Ramón, the Elche coach, said after the 3-4 draw. “You can say that the tie is settled.” The whites, the same day the famous bullfighter took his own life John Belmonte, they won 5-1 in a game that after 11 minutes was tied at one. Puskas he scored four goals, the other Di Stéfano and Gento was once again a cyclone in the white waves.
At the end of the match, Gento’s head was already in the European Cup final: “In Liege, with losing by one goal, happy. Then, as always, a difficult final in amsterdam, and more in front of benfica. We know each other and this already knows what it means”. He was right on both counts. Madrid went on to the final by winning 0-2 at standard, but the end was a bone. Despite taking a 0-2 lead and reaching the break winning 2-3, always with goals from Puskas, the title returned to travel to Lisbon for the second consecutive season: 5-3.
