1972–73 Atlético Madrid season

Atlético Madrid
1972-1973 season
President	Vicente Calderon
Head Coach	Max Merkel
Stadium	Vicente Calderon
Primera Division	Winners; (In 1973–74 European Cup)
Copa del Generalísimo	5th round
European Cup Winners' Cup	Eightfinals
Top goalscorer	League: ; Aragonés (16); All: ; Aragonés (18)
Highest home attendance	70,000 vs Deportivo La Coruña; (20 May 1973)
Lowest home attendance	15,000 vs Real Oviedo; (15 January 1973)
	Home colours
	Home colours

The 1972–73 season was Atlético Madrid's 69th season in existence and the club's 36th consecutive season in the top flight of Spanish football.

Summary

After winning the Cup in 1971, the squad with Austrian head coach Max Merkel^[1] clinched the league trophy being its 7th title in the 1972/73. Paraguayan winger Domingo Benegas^[2] returned back from Burgos CF along the transfer in of Left-back Jose Luis Capon.^[3] As incumbent champions in 1972-73 Copa del Generalisimo the team was early eliminated by Deportivo La Coruña in the 5th round. Also in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup the club reached the eightfinals only to be defeated by the soviet team Spartak Moskow in a two-legged series. Shockingly, Merkel was sacked by the club President Vicente Calderon due to an interview with a German newspaper in which, allegedly, he criticized the Spanish football league.^[4]

Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
-	GK	ESP	Rodri
-	GK	ESP	José Pacheco
-	DF	ARG	Iselín Santos Ovejero
-	DF	ESP	Quique
-	DF	ESP	José Luis Capón
-	DF	ESP	Francisco Melo
-	DF	ESP	Julio Iglesias
-	DF	ESP	Jesús Martínez Jayo
-	DF	ESP	Eusebio Bejarano
-	MF	PAR	Domingo Benegas


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
-	MF	ESP	Adelardo
-	MF	ESP	Alberto Fernández
-	MF	ESP	Javier Irureta
-	MF	ESP	Ignacio Salcedo
-	MF	ESP	Eugenio Leal
-	MF	ESP	Julio Orozco
-	FW	ESP	Luis Aragonés
-	FW	ARG	José Eulogio Gárate
-	FW	BRA	Heraldo Bezerra
-	FW	ESP	José Ufarte
-	FW	POR	Pataco

Transfers

In
Pos.	Name	from	Type
DF	José Luis Capón	Burgos CF
FW	Domingo Benegas	Burgos CF	loan ended

Out
Pos.	Name	To	Type
DF	Isacio Calleja		retired
GK	Zubiarrain

Competitions

Primera Division

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Atlético Madrid (C)	34	20	8	6	49	29	+20	48	Qualification for the European Cup first round
2	Barcelona	34	18	10	6	41	21	+20	46	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
3	Español	34	17	11	6	48	27	+21	45
4	Real Madrid	34	17	9	8	45	29	+16	43
5	Castellón	34	13	9	12	44	38	+6	35

Source: BDFútbol
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head results; 3) Goal difference; 4) Number of goals scored
(C) Champions

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H
Result	L	W	W	W	D	L	W	W	W	D	L	D	W	W	W	D	D	W	W	L	L	L	W	W	D	W	W	W	W	W	D	W	D	W
Position	18	7	6	5	4	7	5	3	2	3	3	5	3	3	1	2	2	2	2	2	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	3	2	1	1	1	1	1

Source: Competitive matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; = Leader qualified to the 1973–74 European Cup; = Classified to the 1973–74 UEFA Cup; = Relegated to the 1973–74 Segunda División

Matches

3 September 1972 1	Atletico Madrid	1–3	Valencia CF	Madrid
	Aragonés 18'	Report	42', 62' Quino 71' Adorno	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 60,000 Referee: Emilio Carlos Guruceta Muro

10 September 1972 2	Real Oviedo	0–2	Atletico Madrid	Oviedo
		Report	26' Gárate 46' Ovejero	Stadium: Carlos Tartiere Referee: Ángel Franco Martínez

17 September 1972 3	Atletico Madrid	2–1	Real Betis	Madrid
	Mellado 26' (aut) Leal 31'	Report	36' Del Pozo	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Mariano Medina Iglesias

23 September 1972 4	Real Madrid	0–1	Atletico Madrid	Madrid
		Report	33' Ufarte	Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu Referee: José Segrelles Del Pilar

1 October 1972 5	Atletico Madrid	0–0	Espanol	Madrid
		Report		Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: José Navarrete Antiñolo

7 October 1972 6	Atletico Bilbao	1–0	Atletico Madrid	Bilbao
	Rojo 8'	Report		Stadium: San Mamés Referee: Emilio Carreño Arquimbau

21 October 1972 7	Atletico Madrid	2–1	Real Sociedad	Madrid
	Esnaola 43' (aut) Aragonés 63'	Report	28' Oyarzabal	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 40,000 Referee: Diego Balaguer García

29 October 1972 8	CD Malaga	0–1	Atletico Madrid	Malaga
		Report	83' Aragonés	Stadium: La Rosaleda Referee: Fernando Orellana Álvarez

4 November 1972 9	Atletico Madrid	5–1	Celta	Madrid
	Salcedo 9', 26' Irureta 20', 72' Aragonés 29'	Report	90' (rig) Domínguez	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 30,000 Referee: José Navarrete Antiñolo

12 November 1972 10	CD Castellon	1–1	Atletico Madrid	Castellón de la Plana
	Clarés 77' (rig)	Report	32' Aragonés	Stadium: Castalia Referee: Ricardo Canera Coscolín

19 November 1972 11	Atletico Madrid	0–1	Sporting Gijon	Madrid
		Report	22' Quini	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Antonio Rigo Sureda

25 November 1972 12	UD Las Palmas	2–2	Atletico Madrid	Las Palmas
	Germán 61' (rig) Páez 78'	Report	5', 28' Aragonés	Stadium: Insular Referee: Diego Balaguer García

3 December 1972 13	Burgos CF	0–1	Atletico Madrid	Burgos
		Report	31' Benegas	Stadium: El Plantío Referee: Antonio Sánchez Ríos

10 December 1972 14	Atletico Madrid	2–0	CF Barcelona	Madrid
	Gárate 23' Becerra 54'	Report		Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 35,000 Referee: Pelayo Serrano Sancristóbal

17 December 1972 15	Granada CF	0–1	Atletico Madrid	Granada
		Report	79' Becerra	Stadium: Los Cármenes Referee: Adolfo Bueno Perales

31 December 1972 16	Atletico Madrid	0–0	Real Zaragoza	Madrid
		Report		Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Antonio Rigo Sureda

7 January 1973 17	Deportivo La Coruna	1–1	Atletico Madrid	La Coruña
	Loureda 74'	Report	15' Irureta	Stadium: Riazor Referee: Antonio Sánchez Ríos

21 January 1973 18	Valencia CF	1–2	Atletico Madrid	Valencia
	Pellicer 61'	Report	43' Gárate 53' Becerra	Stadium: Luis Casanova Referee: Emilio Carlos Guruceta Muro

28 January 1973 19	Atletico Madrid	2–1	Real Oviedo	Madrid
	Aragonés 24' Ovejero 29'	Report	53' Marianín	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Juan María Sáiz Elizondo

4 February 1973 20	Real Betis	1–0	Atletico Madrid	Sevilla
	González 55' (rig)	Report		Stadium: Benito Villamarín Referee: Alberto Martín Álvarez

11 February 1973 21	Atletico Madrid	1–2	Real Madrid	Madrid
	Becerra 67'	Report	57' Santillana 87' Amancio	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Sánchez Ibáñez

25 February 1973 22	Espanol	2–1	Atletico Madrid	Barcelona
	Amiano 63' Martínez 87'	Report	74' Aragonés	Stadium: Sarriá Referee: Juan María Sáiz Elizondo

4 March 1973 23	Atletico Madrid	2–1	Atletico Bilbao	Madrid
	Astrain 7' (aut) Becerra 13'	Report	61' Viteri	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Emilio Carlos Guruceta Muro

11 March 1973 24	Real Sociedad	0–1	Atletico Madrid	San Sebastián
		Report	87' Irureta	Stadium: Atotxa Referee: Emilio Carreño Arquimbau

18 March 1973 25	Atletico Madrid	1–1	CD Malaga	Madrid
	Adelardo 16'	Report	36' Vilanova	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Vicente Forés Bachero

25 March 1973 26	Celta	0–1	Atletico Madrid	Vigo
		Report	18' Gárate	Stadium: Balaídos Referee: Ricardo Canera Coscolín

1 April 1973 27	Atletico Madrid	1–0	CD Castellon	Madrid
	Aragonés 56' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Antonio Tomeo Palanques

8 April 1973 28	Sporting Gijon	2–3	Atletico Madrid	Gijón
	Churruca 42' Megido 50'	Report	60' Salcedo 78', 88' Aragonés	Stadium: El Molinón Referee: Antonio Sánchez Ríos

15 April 1973 29	Atletico Madrid	2–1	UD Las Palmas	Madrid
	Irureta 39' Alberto 53'	Report	10' Pepe Juan	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Fernando Orellana Álvarez

22 April 1973 30	Atletico Madrid	4–2	Burgos CF	Madrid
	Becerra 20' Irureta 63', 66' Adelardo 71'	Report	7' Requejo 88' Burguete	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Andrés Molina Segovia

28 April 1973 31	CF Barcelona	0–0	Atletico Madrid	Barcelona
		Report		Stadium: Estadio del CF Barcelona Referee: Emilio Carreño Arquimbau

6 May 1973 32	Atletico Madrid	2–1	Granada CF	Madrid
	Aragonés 65', 85'	Report	47' Chirri	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Referee: Jaime Oliva Fortuny

13 May 1973 33	Real Zaragoza	1–1	Atletico Madrid	Zaragoza
	Rico 72'	Report	45' Aragonés	Stadium: La Romareda Referee: Luis Medina Díaz

20 May 1973 34	Atletico Madrid	3–1	Deportivo La Coruna	Madrid
	Aragonés 29' Adelardo 63' Gárate 65'	Report	47' Prieto	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 70,000 Referee: Jaime Oliva Fortuny

Copa del Generalísimo

Fifth round

12 April 1973 1	Atletico Madrid	1–0	Espanol	Madrid
	Irureta 70'	Report		Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 60,000 Referee: José Navarrete Antiñolo

23 May 1973 2	Espanol	2–0	Atletico Madrid	Barcelona
	Martínez 53' De Diego 70'	Report		Stadium: Sarriá Attendance: 40,000 Referee: Antonio Sánchez Ríos

European Cup Winners' Cup

Round of 32

14 September 1972 1	SC Bastia	0–0	Atletico Madrid	Ajaccio
		Report		Stadium: François Coty Referee: Schaut

26 settembre 1972 2	Atletico Madrid	2–1	SC Bastia	Madrid
	Salcedo 33' Aragonés 59'	Report	20' Félix	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Gonella

Eightfinals

25 October 1972 1	Atletico Madrid	3–4	Spartak Moskva	Madrid
	Aragonés 79' (pen.) Ovejero 86' Bezerra 90'	Report	42', 87' Redin 59', 77' Bulgakov	Stadium: Vicente Calderon Attendance: 22,000 Referee: Glockner

8 November 1972 2	Spartak Moskva	1–2	Atletico Madrid	Moscow
	Chusainvo 59'	Report	11', 55' Salcedo	Stadium: Dinamo Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Linemayr

Statistics

Squad statistics

Competition	Points	Total						GD
Competition	Points	G	W	D	L	Gs	Ga	GD
1972–73 Primera División	48	34	20	8	6	49	29	+20
1972–73 Copa del Generalísimo	-	2	1	0	1	1	2	-1
1972–73 European Cup Winners' Cup	-	4	2	1	1	7	6	+1
Total	48	40	23	9	8	57	37	+20

Players statistics

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Primera Division		European Cup Winners' Cup		Copa del Generalisimo
No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
-	GK	ESP	Rodri	22	-23	17	-17	4	-6	1	0
-	DF	ARG	Iselín Santos Ovejero	24	3	21	2	2	1	1	0
-	DF	ESP	Quique	24	0	20+1	0	2	0	1	0
-	DF	ESP	José Luis Capón	27	0	20+2	0	3	0	1+1	0
-	MF	PAR	Domingo Benegas	33	1	27	1	4	0	2	0
-	MF	ESP	Adelardo	38	3	33	3	3	0	1+1	0
-	MF	ESP	Alberto Fernández	32	1	21+7	1	2+1	0	1	0
-	MF	ESP	Javier Irureta	36	9	29+1	8	4	0	2	1
-	FW	ESP	Luis Aragonés	37	18	30+2	16	3	2	2	0
-	FW	ARG	José Eulogio Gárate	26	5	24	5	0	0	2	0
-	FW	BRA	Heraldo Bezerra	33	7	24+6	6	2	1	0+1	0
-	GK	ESP	José Pacheco	18	-14	17	-12	0	0	1	-2
-	DF	ESP	Francisco Melo	21	0	17	0	3	0	1	0
-	FW	ESP	José Ufarte	29	1	18+6	1	3	0	2	0
-	MF	ESP	Ignacio Salcedo	24	6	16+3	3	4	3	1	0
-	DF	ESP	Julio Iglesias	19	0	13+4	0	2	0
-	DF	ESP	Jesús Martínez Jayo	18	0	12+4	0	1	0	1	0
-	DF	ESP	Eusebio Bejarano	17	0	12+1	0	1+1	0	2	0
-	MF	ESP	Eugenio Leal	10	1	3+6	1	1	0
-	FW	POR	Pataco	1	0	0+1	0
-	MF	ESP	Julio Orozco	1	0	0+1	0

Source: https://www.bdfutbol.com/en/t/t1972-737.html

References

^ "Max MERKEL". rapidarchiv.at (in German). Retrieved 20 February 2022.
^ "Atletico and Domingo" (in Spanish). abc.com.py. 26 April 2015. Retrieved 26 January 2025.
^ "Fallece Jose Luis Capón por coronavirus, histórico lateral del Atlético de Madrid" (in Spanish). El Confidencial. 29 March 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
^ Fernando M Carreno (11 June 2019). "Mister Whip" (in Spanish). marca.com. Retrieved 11 January 2025.

[1] "Max MERKEL". rapidarchiv.at (in German). Retrieved 20 February 2022.

[2] "Atletico and Domingo" (in Spanish). abc.com.py. 26 April 2015. Retrieved 26 January 2025.

[3] "Fallece Jose Luis Capón por coronavirus, histórico lateral del Atlético de Madrid" (in Spanish). El Confidencial. 29 March 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2020.

[4] Fernando M Carreno (11 June 2019). "Mister Whip" (in Spanish). marca.com. Retrieved 11 January 2025.

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