#3 Jose Villalonga
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The man that started it all – much is made of Real Madrid’s European dominance from 1956 to 1960, but Jose Villalonga was the one in charge for the first one. What’s even more incredible? Aged 36 years and 184 days, the Spaniard was the youngest manager to ever win the European Cup, a record that still stands to this day.
Villalonga took charge in the middle of the 1954/55 season (10th December 1954) and went on to rejuvenate a Real Madrid squad that finished the season as La Liga champions, also winning the Copa Latino.
Di Stefano, Raymond Kopa, Gento, Hector Rial and Miguel Munoz were all a part of Villalonga’s all-conquering side, who then went on to lift the first of Real Madrid’s 11 European Cups in the 1955/56 season, coming from behind twice to beat Stade de Reims 4-3 in the final. Madrid did lose out to Bilbao in the Liga title race that year, though.
In his final season at the club, Villalonga left in the best manner possible, winning a treble as Real Madrid won La Liga, the European Cup and Copa Latino in 1956/57, although early on in the season, Bernabeu undermined Villalonga in the dressing room, asking Di Stefano to ignore the manager’s instructions to stay up front. Sadly for Villalonga, it worked.
It was no surprise then, that he left the club in the summer – although a win percentage of 62.86% in 2 and a half seasons was no mean feat.
