Atletico Madrid have invited former striker Ruben Ayala to Tuesday night’s UEFA Champions League clash against Celtic.
Ruben Ayala has been invited by the La Liga side to pay homage to his role in Atletico’s 2-0 aggregate European Cup victory over Celtic in 1974, even though Ayala was sent off in the 0-0 first leg and missed the second due to suspension.
Ayala will also be honoured by his former team at an event on Monday. Ayala was nicknamed ‘the mouse’ during his time at the club with the event being called ‘the return of the mouse’.
Atletico previously honoured the victory over Celtic 49 years ago, which was branded the ‘shame game’, by wearing a special kit inspired by that win in last month’s 2-2 draw at Celtic Park.
The match between the sides in 1974 saw three Atletico players sent off, with an additional seven booked. Police in attendance at the match had to intervene at the final whistle to separate both teams.
For Atletico to continue to commemorate such an infamous match, primarily remembered for the wrong reasons, is interesting to say the least. The invitation of Ayala to Tuesday’s game and the honouring him one day prior demonstrate that Atletico view the match between the sides as historically significant. This perspective differs from that of most of the football world, which prefers not to mention the ‘shame game’.
Ayala’s appearance will come off the back of recent comments he made to Spanish newspaper [Marca], he said: “In the first half they made a brutal tackle on me that made me jump into the air and they didn’t even show a card. It was Babacan’s style of managing the game, it was homemade, homemade. He must have hated us.
“It was excessive for him (referee) to throw me out,” said Ayala, who was known as the Mouse. “I was only sent off one or two other times in my career, I remember another one at Atlante [in Mexico], never again at Atletico.”
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