Thread by @PausaFutbol

Great teams of the past – Real Madrid's Yé-Yé.

Beatlemania, Miguel Muñoz & Spanish league domination. [THREAD]

#PausaHistoria

1959, Beatlemania was about to take Europe by storm. In Madrid, Miguel Muñoz – ex-Real Madrid player & captain of the club not too long ago was preparing to take over full-time managerial duties after a short stint with the academy.

The faith that club president Santiago Bernabéu showed in Muñoz was very unusual. Bernabéu had sacked 13 managers in 17 years, including during the era in which the team was winning the European cup yearly.

Allowing Muñoz to take the helm of a rebuild during such a tumultuous time period was a very uncharacteristic decision, even if the two shared a great relationship.

As a Real Madrid player, Muñoz won the European Cup three consecutive times alongside the great Di Stèfano, Ferenc Puskas, and Francisco (Paco) Gento before retiring.

Muñoz hit the ground running as a manager of the players he once called teammates, winning the European Cup in his first season. League success came shortly after as Madrid dominated much of the early 60s.

As the curse of age and piling up of injuries hit much of the dominant old guard, Real Madrid had to now begin to phase them out. Meanwhile, a humiliation for Spain during the 62’ World Cup forced the federation to ban foreign players from signing for Spanish teams.

Club president Santiago Bernabéu & Miguel Muñoz had to now find a way to replace Real Madrid’s foreign superstars with Spanish talent. In 1964, Di Stefano feeling alienated by Muñoz left for Espanyol. By 1968, Puskas and Santamaríá hung their boots.

Paco Gento assumed the captaincy of a young all-Spanish Real Madrid. Santiago Bernabéu was prepossessed by a Deportivo La Coruña player, Amancio Amaro, with the very unoriginal nickname “El Brujo” (The Wizard) & spent big money to prise him away from La Coruña.

Bernabéu also signed Zoco from Osasuna & two years later made a move for the legendary Pirri from Granada. Muñoz meanwhile integrated Manolo Sanchis, Ramon Grosso, Antonio Betancort, Manuel Velázquez & Pedro de Felipe from Madrid’s academy.

A few days before Real Madrid were to play in the European Cup final of 66, a Marca photographer snapped this iconic photo of a few of the players with the caption “Yé-Yé”, a Spanish mispronunciation of the chorus “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah” from The Beatles’ famous song “She Loves You”.

The players wore their hair long, a significant aesthetic change from that of the previous generation of players. The picture of them, emulating The Beatles, at a time when The Beatles were a cultural phenomenon stuck on & they were referred to as Yé-Yé ever since.

The Yé-Yé side were young, energetic, and entertaining, whose key players could enthrall the fans with their skills while winning a lot.

The team won the 1964/65 league title but were unable to capture Real Madrid's most important trophy: The European Cup, as they were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Benfica.

The following season, Real Madrid faced Feyenoord, Kilmarnock, Anderlecht, and Inter Milan en route to the final. The first two rounds were easy going for Madrid, beating Feyenoord and Kilmarnock 6-2 and 7-3 on aggregate, respectively. They also edged Anderlecht 4-3 on aggregate.

The game against Inter was a real challenge. Confident in his team’s ability, and claiming that "Madrid had been eclipsed" Helenio Herrera had booked a hotel for the final already. However, this hubris would cost Herrera.

At the San Siro, Real Madrid edged out their rivals 1-0, with a goal from Amancio Amaro, and followed that up with a 1-1 draw at home. The Yé-Yé side were through to the final against FK Partizan.

The final against the Yugoslavian side was tense. Madrid conceded in the 55th minute, but rallied with goals from Amancio Amaro and Fernando Serena to win 2-1, and end their 6-year drought.

Real Madrid won 3 more league titles, including the 1966/67 title, in which the team lost only one game. However, the team failed to win the European cup. In 1970/71, they went trophyless for the first time in 19 years, which prompted people to call for Muñoz's head.

This season marked the beginning of the end for the Ye-Ye team, as Paco Gento, de Felipe, Antonio Betancort, and Manolo Sanchis all retired at its end.

However, after signing Carlos Santillana, the team won yet another league title, making it Muñoz's 9th title. Despite this victory, by January 1974, Real Madrid was in 7th place, and Miguel Muñoz was fired, signaling the end of the Ye-Ye team.

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