The anatomy of a remontada: History and myths of Real Madrid's famous European comebacks

SANTIAGO BERNABEU, MADRID — By 2016, the son of one of the men most synonymous with Real Madrid comebacks had just about had enough of all the carry-on.

“Leave my father in peace, every time you mention his name to make a comeback, we lose,” Roberto, the offspring of Madrid hero Juanito, tweeted after recently-appointed head coach Zinedine Zidane and his players slipped to a 2-0 first-leg defeat at Wolfsburg.

Former Spain forward Juanito starred in the great Madrid teams of the 1980s alongside the likes of Jorge Valdano and Emiliano Butragueno who, much like the current vintage, never seemed to know when they were beaten.

A tenacious performer who, for better or worse, generally pushed everything to the limit (see his shocking 1987 assault on Bayern Munich's Lothar Matthaus for the regrettable side of that coin), Juanito embodied Madrid’s desire to fight to the end and claimed he would have been an ultra on the terraces had he not been a player.

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“Ninety minutes in the Bernabeu is a very long time,” Juanito famously warned Inter Milan after the Serie A side claimed a 2-0 win in the first leg of the 1984/85 UEFA Cup semi-final at San Siro.

It certainly is a long time at Madrid's famous home ground. Just ask Bayern Munich, who were 1-0 up heading into the 88th minute of Wednesday's UEFA Champions League semifinal.

After Juanito put Inter on notice, Madrid promptly won 3-0 and lifted the trophy in the final. They did it again the following year, losing 3-1 in Italy before beating Inter 5-1 after extra-time. By that point, it had become a ridiculous habit. 

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