The club signed 1955–56 French league champion manager Luis Carniglia as its new head coach.[1] New arrivals for the team were goalkeeper Rogelio Domínguez, a champion with Argentina at the 1957 Copa América,[2] and from Nacional de Montevideo Uruguayan defender José Emilio Santamaría, who played at the 1954 FIFA World Cup and brought attention due to his style of play.[3] These two signings were crucial to boost the defense of the team with an impressive 26 goals conceded during 30 matches in the Spanish league, helping also the offensive line wherein Alfredo Di Stéfano and his 19 goals clinched another league top scorer trophy, this time tied with Manuel Badenes (Real Valladolid) and Ricardo Alós (Valencia) .
The team, with an excellent balance in defense and offense, won its sixth Spanish league title, finishing 3 points above Atlético Madrid despite a bad row of results during the winter. Also, the squad clinched its third consecutive European Cup defeating A.C. Milan 3–2 after extra time at Heysel.[4] After clinching the two trophies, Madrid's attention turned to the Copa del Generalísimo with hopes of becoming the first team in the world to clinch the continental treble. Real Sociedad was defeated convincingly to set up the final against Bilbao at the Bernabéu. Playing at home in front of 100,000 spectators with the treble on the line, Madrid were shut down by Athletic, losing 0–2. Real Madrid continued its unlucky run of losing Copa finals. As of 2022, the club has never won a treble, with its next closest attempt coming four years later.
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.
^Simpson, Paul; Hesse-Lichtenberger, Uli (October 2005). Sleight, Hugh (ed.). "50 Things You Never Knew About... The European Cup". FourFourTwo (134). Teddington: Haymarket Consumer: 101. ISSN1355-0276.
