Chelsea fans: Discuss the Atletico Madrid game with our reporter Simon Johnson ... or even a deserted one, but at an empty stadium in neutral Bucharest, Romania (the second leg will be at … [47], The 2007–08 season proved to be the most successful season for the club in the past decade. [51] Atlético saw this domestic success as an opportunity to reinforce their squad for the upcoming Champions League season. Despite reaching the Copa del Rey final in 2000, Atlético were relegated. The 2012–13 season saw the club finish with three trophies in a little over a year.[63][64]. All of the success, however, produced little change in the overall Gil strategy, and although Antić survived three consecutive seasons in charge, he was replaced during the summer of 1998 with Arrigo Sacchi, who himself only remained in the managerial hot seat for less than six months. The Spanish Civil War gave Los Colchoneros a reprieve, as Real Oviedo was unable to play due to the destruction of their stadium during the bombings. Significant players from this era included the now-veteran Adelardo and regular goalscorers Luis Aragonés, Javier Irureta and José Eulogio Gárate, the latter winning the Pichichi three times in 1969, 1970 and 1971. Sevilla and Atletico Madrid name starting lineups ahead of crucial La Liga clash, Real Madrid waiting for Eden Hazard to return to 100% fitness before playing him again, Manchester United want to sell David de Gea. Along with restrictions on entry access imposed by several countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic, UEFA moved the venue for the Atletico vs Chelsea match to Romania. Jesús Gil also closed down Atlético's youth academy in 1992,[38] a move that would prove significant due to 15-year-old academy member Raúl who, as a result, went across town to later achieve worldwide fame with rivals Real Madrid. [90] In February 2020, Pakistan Football Federation announced the 2020-21 Football Federation League in which Atletico Madrid Lahore was included in Group C and was made a professional Pakistani football club. Liverpool are also unable to travel to Germany to face Leipzig in their last 16 clash. Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. [60] By winning the Europa League, they qualified for the 2010 UEFA Super Cup against Inter Milan, winner of the 2009–10 UEFA Champions League, which was played at Stade Louis II in Monaco on 27 August 2010. This spell ended, however, on 17 May 2013 after Atlético beat their city rivals 2–1 at the Santiago Bernabéu in the 2013 Copa del Rey Final, and continued on 29 September 2013 when they won a 1–0 victory, again at the Bernabéu. Between 1961 and 1980, Real Madrid dominated La Liga, winning the competition 14 times. His first success came quickly as Bayern Munich had refused to participate in the Intercontinental Cup because of fixture congestion,[32] and as European Cup runners-up, Atlético were invited instead. The following year the club reached the 1963 final, but lost to English side Tottenham Hotspur 5–1. [42], In 2006, Atlético signed Portuguese midfielders Costinha and Maniche, as well as Argentine forward Sergio Agüero. Since the German’s arrival at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea’s form has generally picked up but at the weekend they were disappointed to come away from Southampton’s St Mary’s Stadium with only a point from a 1-1 draw. Lorenzo believed in discipline, caution and disrupting the opponents' game, and although controversial, his methods proved successful—after winning La Liga in 1973, the club reached the 1974 European Cup Final. [18] The Metropolitano was used until 1966, when they moved to the new Estadio Vicente Calderón. The kit has been made by Nike since 2001, as the company wants to provide competition with rival brand Adidas, who have a long-term deal with Real Madrid. In the 1970s, Atlético also recruited several Argentine players, signing Rubén Ayala, Panadero Díaz and Ramón "Cacho" Heredia as well as coach Juan Carlos Lorenzo. Atletico Madrid 0-1 Chelsea (Mjelde, 77 mins) 9.05am EST 09:05 They've only gone and missed another one! The following season the Blues were beaten 1-0 by hosts Steaua Bucharest there, but a year later two-goal Ramires inspired a 4-0 victory on the same pitch. Shortly after the defeat in the 1974 European Cup Final, Atlético appointed their veteran player Luis Aragonés as coach. Inspired by Brazilian centre-forward Vavá and Enrique Collar, Atlético reached the semi-finals after beating Drumcondra, CSKA Sofia and Schalke 04. [93] In August 2014, the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights wrote to Atlético, calling on it to end the sponsorship by and promotion of Azerbaijan because of the country's human rights record, calling it "one of the most repressive countries in the world".[94]. Atlético's best years coincided with dominant Real Madrid teams. He backed his former manager and said that, "Dismissing Javier was the easy way out, but he was not the cause of our problems. Nothing is concrete just yet, given that the Spanish government have extended, for a third time, until 16 February the entry restrictions on flights and ships coming from the United Kingdom. Atletico Madrid makes its Champions League debut at its new stadium against Chelsea. Ranieri handed in his resignation with the club sitting 17th out of 20 in the league table and heading towards relegation. The team reached the round of 32 in the UEFA Cup, where they were defeated by Bolton Wanderers. The change took hold because red and white striped tops were the cheap to make, as the same combination was used to make bed mattresses, and the unused cloth was easily converted into football shirts. [95] Because shirts would have to be introduced and removed from shops at a very fast pace to keep up with film releases, Nike decided to not include a sponsor's logo on replica shirts made from 2002 to 2005. However, there are a number of alternative theories which claim they were named so because their stadium was "camped" on the river bank, or because Los Indios (The Indians) were the traditional enemy of Los Blancos (The Whites), which is the nickname of the club's city rivals, Real Madrid. During his second spell in charge, Aragonés led the club to a runners-up finish in La Liga and a winner's medal in the Copa del Rey, both in 1985. Aragonés scored with a superb, curling free-kick that looked like the winner, but in the last minute of the game, Bayern defender Georg Schwarzenbeck equalized with a stunning 25-yarder that left Atlético goalkeeper Miguel Reina motionless. Atletico Madrid are considering finding an alternative stadium to use when they play Chelsea in the last 16 of the Champions League according to a report in Diario AS. Against a Bayern Munich team that included Franz Beckenbauer, Sepp Maier, Paul Breitner, Uli Hoeneß and Gerd Müller, Atlético played above themselves. 8.21am EST 08:21 Half time: Atletico Madrid 0-0 Chelsea … From his central midfield position, he formed a legendary midfield alongside Machín and Ramón Gabilondo. Despite the loss of Sánchez, Aragonés went on to lead the club to success in the Supercopa de España in 1985 and then guided them to the European Cup Winners' Cup final in 1986. In this vein, Atlético fans were probably the originators, and are the most frequent singers, of the song, sung to the tune of the Real Madrid anthem, "Hala Madrid, hala Madrid, el equipo del gobierno, la vergüenza del país", "Go Madrid, go Madrid, the government's team, the country's shame.". [91] It made its debut against Hazara Coal and won by 2–0. Chelsea face Atletico Madrid at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, March 17. Aviación Nacional had been founded in 1939 by members of the Spanish Air Force. During the 1970s, they became known as Los Indios, which some attribute to the club's signing several South American players after the restrictions on signing foreign players were lifted. They also reached the quarter-final round of the Copa del Rey, where they were beaten by eventual champions Valencia. Before the 1997–98 season, the heavy spending continued with the signings of Christian Vieri and Juninho. They took a first-half lead through Diego Godín and led until the third minute of injury time, when Sergio Ramos headed in an equaliser from a corner; the match went to extra time, and Real ultimately won 4–1. More recently, a heated rivalry has emerged between Atlético Madrid and Barcelona, which is also considered one of the "Classics" of Spanish football. In 1941, a decree issued by Francisco Franco[20] banned teams from using foreign names and the club became Atlético Aviación de Madrid. Chelsea - Atletico Madrid, Champions League Group of 16 Round, Dummy Country, Wednesday, March 17, 2021 Madrid 3–0 Athletic Bilbao: EL champs", "Atletico Madrid upsets Real Madrid to win Copa del Rey", "Football: Atletico stun 10-man Real Madrid to win Spanish Cup", "Barcelona 1 Atletico Madrid 1, La Liga: match report", "Real Madrid beat Atlético Madrid on penalties", https://www.fourfourtwo.com/us/features/why-everything-you-know-about-madrid-derby-might-be-wrong, "Simply the best – all-time greats final selection", "Duels between Barça and Atlético enclose as much history as the Classic", "Atlético, campeón de la Europa League: Todas las reacciones de los protagonistas", "Atletico de Madrid GLOBE SOCCER SPECIAL AWARD 2014", "Atletico de Madrid BEST CLUB OF THE YEAR 2012", "Atletico Madrid BEST CLUB OF THE YEAR 2018", "IFFHS AWARDS 2018 – CLUB WORLD RANKING 2018 : ATLETICO DE MADRID FOR THE FIRST TIME ! Atlético had a comparatively disappointing 2010–11 season, finishing only seventh in the League and being eliminated in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey and the group stage of the Europa League. While Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu proudly rises on Paseo de la Castellana in the wealthy Chamartín neighbourhood of northern Madrid, Atlético's former stadium, the less glamorous Vicente Calderón, stood in the central-south of Madrid 1.8 km from the city center in the working class barrio of Arganzuela. Here’s all the info you need to watch this Champions League match. , commonly referred to as Atlético de Madrid in English or simply as Atlético or Atleti, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, that play in La Liga. Here’s all the info you need to watch this Champions League match. In October 2018, Atletico De Madrid announced their first academy in Pakistan which was based in Lahore, which was the first European football academy in Pakistan. On 17 May 2014, a 1–1 draw at the Camp Nou against Barcelona secured the La Liga title for Atlético, their first since 1996, and the first title since 2003–04 not won by Barcelona or Real Madrid. The club now plays in the renovated Wanda Metropolitano Stadium,[86] which was expanded from a 20,000 seat capacity to 68,000 after it was used for Madrid's failed bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. Chelsea's Olivier Giroud celebrates with his teammates after scoring his side's first goal during the Champions League, round of 16, first leg soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Chelsea at the National Arena stadium in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021. As a compromise, this club merged with Athletic, whose squad had lost eight players during the Civil War. Coincidentally, it was the stadium where Atleti won the 2012 Europa League – defeating Athletic Club 3-0 on the night. Following weeks of speculation, the venue for the first leg of Atletico Madrid’s Champions League match against Chelsea has been confirmed. [25] This achievement was significant for the club, as the Cup Winners' Cup was the only major European trophy that Real Madrid never won. [66] In 2018, they won their third Europa League title in nine years by beating Marseille 3–0 in the final at Stade de Lyon in Lyon, courtesy of a brace from Antoine Griezmann and a goal from club captain Gabi in what would be his last match for the club. [61][62] Again, by winning the Europa League, they qualified for the 2012 UEFA Super Cup against Chelsea, winner of the previous season's Champions League, which was played at Stade Louis II, Monaco on 31 August 2012; Atlético won 4–1, including a hat-trick by Falcao in the first half. It was the first time since the 1961–62 European Cup Winners' Cup that Atlético had claimed a European title. Sánchez, however, only remained at the club for one season before his move across the city to Real Madrid. [19] After the move, the Metropolitano was demolished and was replaced with university buildings and an office block belonging to the company ENUSA. Atlético, however, lost their third successive European final, this time 3–0 to Dynamo Kyiv. The club's training ground is the Ciudad Deportiva Atlético de Madrid in Majadahonda, around 20 km west of Madrid. In July 2007, Fernando Torres left the club for Liverpool for €38 million,[43] while Luis García moved in the opposite direction at the same time in an unrelated transfer. Atletico Madrid 0-1 Chelsea (Mjelde, 77 mins) 9.05am EST 09:05 They've only gone and missed another one! Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid are clubs with contrasting identities and different fates. That the match isn't being played at Atletico's Wanda Metropolitano Stadium due to Spain's Covid-19 travel restrictions on visitors from the United Kingdom is a huge advantage for Chelsea. This contributed to the club's nickname, Los Colchoneros. Romania’s national stadium in Bucharest will play host to the fixture – originally scheduled to be in Atleti’s Wanda Metropolitano stadium in the Spanish capital – due to the travel ban on UK arrivals into Spain. These founders saw the new club as a youth branch of their childhood team, Athletic Bilbao[9] who they had just seen win the 1903 Copa del Rey Final in the city. [7] Atlético also co-owns Liga MX club Atlético San Luis, and the Canadian Premier League side Atlético Ottawa.[8]. [26] Enrique Collar, who continued to be an influential player during this era, was now joined by the likes of midfielder Miguel Jones and midfield playmaker Adelardo.[27]. Spanish professional sports club based in Madrid, For a list of former and current Atlético Madrid players with a Wikipedia article, see, The following coaches won at least one trophy while in charge with club, Madrid's failed bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, Ciudad Deportiva del Nuevo Cerro del Espino, "Wanda Metropolitano (Estadio Olimpico de la Peineta)", "Israeli Billionaire Idan Ofer Makes Progress in Bid to Buy Stake in Atletico Madrid Soccer Club", "Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer buys share of Spanish football giants Atlético Madrid", "Israeli Business Magnate Buys a 15% Stake in Atlético Madrid", "Real Madrid vs Atlético Madrid Derby: Great Local Football Derbies", "Atletico de Madrid are ditching their ISL franchise partnership with Atletico de Kolkata", "It's no more just about Real or Barca breaking records: La Liga India head", "The Atlético Crest and its Meaning – The Offside – Atlético Madrid Spanish La Liga Football Blog", "Athletic-Atlético, historia de dos parientes", "Manuel Garnica, the "Saint" who scored a goal with Athletic", "Talking History: Atlético Madrid – This Is Anfield (Liverpool FC)", European Cup & Champions League History 1955–2010, "1958/59: Di Stéfano keeps Madrid rolling on", "Are 'madhouse' Atlético Madrid the worst run club in Europe? "Chelsea will have to handle these guys because most of them, barring perhaps Felix, are playing well at the moment," Allnutt adds. Atletico Madrid vs. Chelsea: Live stream UEFA Champions League, watch online, TV, start time, odds Los Colchoneros are the favorites but have hit a rough patch as of late. [88], Atlético also runs a sports academy at the Ciudad Deportiva del Nuevo Cerro del Espino in Majadahonda. The club played their home games at the 54,990[85] seat Estadio Vicente Calderón in southern Madrid until 2017. In 1919, the Compañía Urbanizadora Metropolitana—the company that ran the underground communication system in Madrid—acquired some land, near the Ciudad Universitaria. Before this, the club played originally at the Ronda de Vallecas until 1923. Throughout their history the club has been known by a number of nicknames, including Los Colchoneros ("The Mattress Makers"), due to their first team stripes being the same colours as traditional mattresses. [54][55], With the arrival of Quique as coach in October 2009, Atlético saw a huge change of fortunes. They were associated with the military airforce (renamed Atlético Aviación), until the regime's preferences moved towards Real Madrid in the 1950s. In December 1999, Gil and his board were suspended pending an investigation into the misuse of club funds, with government-appointed administrator José Manuel Rubí running Atlético's day-to-day operations. [97][98] Atlético is also supported by King Felipe VI, who became Honorary President of the club in 2003.[99]. The most influential and charismatic player of these years was the captain Germán Gómez, who was signed from Racing de Santander in 1939. It was again Luis Aragonés, in his fourth and last spell as manager of Atlético, who brought them back to the Primera División. Atlético had not won La Liga for 10 years and were desperate for league success. With the removal of club President Jesús Gil and his board, the players performed poorly and the club floundered. Atletico star Lemar in danger of missing Chelsea clash Werner admits to top-four fears under Lampard Tuchel explains why Thiago Silva and Pulisic missed win over Sheff Utd [92] Atlético Madrid admitted its sponsorship deal had a political dimension, saying the intention was to "promote the image of Azerbaijan". Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. The club co-owned the Indian Super League (ISL) franchise in Kolkata, formerly named Atlético de Kolkata, which won the competition twice, but in 2017 Atlético decided to end its franchise partnership with the ISL club due to broken commitments. During the 1920s, Athletic won the Campeonato del Centro three times and were Copa del Rey runners-up in 1921, where they faced parent club Athletic Bilbao, as they would again in 1926. Playing on two fronts, Atlético fell out of the league title contention early while, in the Champions League, they were eliminated by Ajax in extra-time in the quarter-finals. MATCHDAY: Chelsea hosts Atlético, Bayern leads Lazio By The Associated Press March 17, 2021 GMT Chelsea's head coach Thomas Tuchel watches the game during the English Premier League soccer match between Leeds United and Chelsea at Elland Road stadium, in Leeds, England, Saturday, March 13, 2021. [9], The next season, 1996–97, saw the club take part in the UEFA Champions League for the first time. [29] In the away leg of the semi-final against Celtic, Atlético had Ayala, Díaz and substitute Quique all sent off during a hard-fought encounter in what was reported as one of the worst cases of cynical fouling the tournament has seen. Pertarungan itu diperkirakan berlangsung sengit lantaran Chelsea memiliki modal apik pada laga nanti. The facility maintains grass and artificial patches as well as a gym. [67], Certainly, the dictatorial state sought to make political capital out of Real Madrid's European Cup trophies at a time when Spain was internationally isolated; "Real Madrid are the best embassy we ever had", said Franco's foreign minister Fernando Maria de Castiella. The closest Atlético came to the La Liga trophy was the 1990–91 season when they finished runners-up by 10 points to Johan Cruyff's Barcelona. ", "Member associations – UEFA Coefficients – Club coefficients", "Gil Marín no quiso vender sus acciones del Atlético - Más Fútbol - AS.com", https://www.uefa.com/MultimediaFiles/Download/StatDoc/competitions/UEFACup/01/67/59/06/1675906_DOWNLOAD.pdf, "Ayuntamiento de Madrid – El Calderón se va al nuevo Estadio olímpico", "Spanish club Atletico Madrid to open football academy in Bucharest, its first in Europe", "Atlético de Madrid set to conduct its first talent hunt trails in Lahore", "PFF League begins 10 March – FootballPakistan.com (FPDC)", "Do you know who Atlético Madrid's real sponsor is? Despite pressure from big clubs to sell star players Agüero and Forlán, Atlético remained committed to keeping their strong attacking base in the hopes for a successful new season. Chelsea have one defeat in our last 13 away matches against Spanish teams (four wins, eight draws). Aragonés subsequently served as coach on four separate occasions, from 1974 to 1980, from 1982 to 1987, once again from 1991 until 1993 and finally from 2002 to 2003. João Félix is the club's most expensive signing at €126 million and at €120 million, Antoine Griezmann is the club's biggest sale. After the completion of the Estadio Metropolitano de Madrid in 1923, the club moved there until the Vicente Calderón was finished in 1966. The players are to blame because we have not been playing well and we have been committing a lot of errors." [52] This defeat led Atletico's management to announce that manager Abel Resino had to leave. Somewhat unexpectedly, in the following 1995–96 season, newly arrived head coach Radomir Antić, with a squad including holdovers Toni, Roberto Solozábal, Delfí Geli, Juan Vizcaíno, José Luis Caminero, Diego Simeone and Kiko, as well as new acquisitions Milinko Pantić, Luboslav Penev, Santi Denia and José Francisco Molina finally delivered the much sought-after league title as Atlético won the La Liga/Copa del Rey double. The Atletico Madrid match in the UEFA Champions League against Chelsea will be held at the Arena Nacionala stadium in the Romanian capital. [53] After failing to sign Danish former footballer Michael Laudrup, Atlético Madrid made it official that the new manager for the rest of the season would be former player Quique. With the departure of Herrera in 1953, the club began to slip behind Real Madrid and Barcelona and for the remainder of the 1950s were left to battle it out with Athletic Bilbao for the title of third team in Spain. Non Members: from september 8th (10:00h.). ", "Atlético Madrid can put end to glory of suffering in Liverpool semi", Atletico Madrid Season Needs Flores Formula, Torres cuts short holiday, set to join Liverpool, "New and improved Forlan to test Liverpool", "Abel Resino: Atletico Madrid job dream come true", https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/sep/14/diego-forlan-alex-ferguson-studs, "Quique Sánchez Flores to be manager at Atlético de Madrid", "Atletico Madrid coach Quique Sanchez Flores hails players' resolve against Fulham", "Liverpool 2 – 1 Atletico Madrid (agg 2 – 2)", "Fulham 1 Atlético Madrid 2 aet: match report", Report: Atlético Madrid v Sevilla FC – Spanish Copa del Rey – ESPN Soccernet, "Atl. Atletico Madrid vs. Chelsea at Arena Nationala on Tuesday, Feb. 23. English citizens cannot access Spain at the moment because of the pandemic, and that could disrupt things. With the legendary Ricardo Zamora as manager, the club subsequently won their first La Liga title that season and retained the title in 1941. Atletico Madrid vs. Chelsea predictions, best bets and preview for their game in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League. Chelsea’s trip to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League round of 16 has been moved to Bucharest. Note: Atlético reached the 2007–08 UEFA Cup Round of 32 as qualified from the UEFA Intertoto Cup. Atlético won 2–0 with goals from José Antonio Reyes and Sergio Agüero, Atlético's first win in the UEFA Super Cup. However, during the 1960s and 1970s, Atlético Madrid seriously challenged Barcelona for the position of second team. He received considerable help from Hugo Sánchez, who scored 19 league goals and won the Pichichi. More significantly, the team finished the league season in fourth place, qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time since the 1996–97 season. In 1904, they were joined by dissident members of Real Madrid. Atlético also won another UEFA Super Cup after beating Real Madrid 4–2 at the outset of the following season at the Lilleküla Arena in Tallinn. [13] Athletic Madrid adopted the red and white shirt, leading to them being known as Los Rojiblancos,[14][15] but opted to keep their existing blue shorts whereas the Bilbao team switched to new black shorts. [10] The side began playing in blue and white halved shirts, the then colours of Athletic Bilbao, but by 1911, both the Bilbao and Madrid teams were playing in their current colours of red and white stripes. Atletico lifted the Europa League at the 2011-built stadium in May 2012, 10 days before Chelsea’s Champions League triumph in Munich. The 1999–2000 season proved disastrous for Atlético. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda) Striker Diego Forlán was crowned with the Pichichi and also won the European Golden Shoe after scoring 32 goals for Atlético that season. With this in mind, Atletico are looking beyond the Wanda Metropolitano as a precautionary measure. 9 of 12 10 of 12 Chelsea's Olivier Giroud, right, fights for the ball with Atletico Madrid's Mario Hermoso during the Champions League, round of 16, first leg soccer match between Atletico … Atlético have won La Liga on 10 occasions, including a league and cup double in 1996; the Copa del Rey on 10 occasions; two Supercopas de España, one Bucharest’s National Arena was the stadium where Diego Simeone won his first trophy in charge of Atletico – a 3-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in the 2012 Europa League final. He spent the entire first game instructing Atletico to … [34][35], In 1987, controversial politician and businessman Jesús Gil became club president, running the club until his resignation in May 2003.[36]. Thus, both La Liga and Athletic's relegation were postponed, the latter by winning a playoff against Osasuna, champion of the Segunda División tournament. During their debut La Liga campaign, the club were managed by Fred Pentland, but after two seasons they were relegated to Segunda División. — Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 22, 2021. As it stands, going into this second leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 between Chelsea and Atletico Madrid, it seems like Diego Simeone is standing right on top of it. On Tuesday, Atletico Madrid play their ‘home’ game against Chelsea in Bucharest, Romania. Football Espana brings you up-to-the-minute news and views from the Spanish Primera Liga, brought to you by our enthusiastic and talented team. On 21 October, Atletico were hammered 4–0 by English club Chelsea in the Champions League group stage. They briefly returned to La Liga in 1934 but were relegated again in 1936 after Josep Samitier took over in mid-season from Pentland. Previously, the club was sponsored by Columbia Pictures, who would change the shirt sponsor's logo, and occasionally the shirt itself, as they did with the away shirt when Spider-Man 2 was in cinemas. [16] Athletic Bilbao won the 1911 Copa del Rey Final using several 'borrowed' players from Athletic Madrid, including Manolón [es] who scored one of their goals.[17]. Atletico are waiting to see how the Covid-19 situation develops in the coming weeks and how that might affect their clash with Chelsea … [6] Felipe VI, the king of Spain, has been the honorary president of the club since 2003. The Vicente Calderón has been demolished in July 2020, and replaced by a waterfront park at the banks of the Manzanares River in Madrid. [44] Other additions included Portuguese winger Simão Sabrosa from Benfica for €20 million and winger José Antonio Reyes from Arsenal for €12 million. [33] Aragonés subsequently led the club to further successes in the Copa del Rey in 1976 and La Liga in 1977. Though they continued to lag somewhat in La Liga during the 2009–10 season, finishing in the ninth position, they managed to get third place in the 2009–10 UEFA Champions League group stage and subsequently entered the Europa League in the round of 32, going on to win the Europa League, beating English teams Liverpool in the semi-finals and eventually Fulham[56] in the final held in the HSH Nordbank Arena in Hamburg on 12 May 2010. The 1957–58 season saw Ferdinand Daučík take charge of Atlético, where he led them to second place in La Liga. [49] There was public outrage after his dismissal, many believing he was not the cause of Atlético's problems, namely player Diego Forlán. In April 2019, they launched "Football School Program" in Lahore. Atlético has played at the European stage regularly since its 1958–59 European Cup debut, subsequently entering the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup (1961–62), the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup (1963–64), the UEFA Cup (1971–72) and the UEFA Super Cup (2009–10). Atlético's success continued in the latter half of the season when they placed fourth once again in the league table, securing a position in the playoff round of the UEFA Champions League. 8.21am EST 08:21 Half time: Atletico Madrid 0-0 Chelsea … In terms of league titles won, Atlético Madrid are the third most successful club in Spanish football – behind Real Madrid and Barcelona. The club play their home games at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium, which has a capacity of 68,456. However, by tradition and current affairs, the greatest rivalry is that which exists with its "merengues" neighbors.[69][70]. [68] Such perceptions have had an important impact on the city's footballing identities, tapping into the collective consciousness. [48], On 3 February 2009, Javier Aguirre was dismissed from his post as manager after a poor start to the season, going without a win in six games. [45][46], In July 2007, the Atlético board reached an agreement with the City of Madrid to sell the land where their stadium is located and move the club to the City-owned Olympic Stadium. Manzano himself was replaced with Diego Simeone in December 2011 after a poor run of form in La Liga. Arena Nationala will be the stadium. The loss was a 0-3 defeat to Barcelona in March 2018. Celebrities Joaquín Sabina, Belén Esteban, Birgitte V. Gade, Leiva, Álvaro Bautista, Dani Martin, Ana Rosa Quintana, Javier Bardem, Sara Carbonero, Pablo Iglesias Turrión, El Langui, Pedro Sánchez, Luis de Guindos, Rosendo Mercado, José Tomás, Cayetano Martínez de Irujo, David Muñoz, Will Smith, Harrison Ford, Halle Berry, Tom Cruise, Matt Damon, Vin Diesel, Charlize Theron and Karl-Anthony Towns are all fans of the club.