A living legend with a striking trademark: goals, goals, goals
28.07.2010
In Spain he was hailed as a living legend at his official send-off on Monday, after more than 18 years in the colours of Real Madrid. This afternoon Germany welcomes Raul as the Bundesliga's newest superstar. In signing Raul Gonzalez Blanco, to give the 33-year-old his full name, Schalke have succeeded in bringing one of the world's greatest footballers to the Ruhr.
The prolific striker made his La Liga bow on 29 October 1994 at the tender age of 17 years and four months and remains the youngest player to debut for Real in the club's long and distinguished history. He went on to make a total of 741 league appearances, notching a hefty 323 goals. Raul thus heads the internal scoring charts at Real, 16 goals ahead of club legend Alfredo Di Stefano. And it appears more than doubtful whether any of the current crop of Real strikers will beat this record in the near future.
Raul quickly became a symbolic figure in the Spanish capital and established himself as the legitimate successor to the legendary Emilio Butragueno, whose number seven shirt he inherited. He claimed a regular berth in the team in his debut season, scoring seven goals on the way to the league title, the first of six in a glittering career with Los Blancos.
The Madrid-born player enjoyed his greatest success on the European stage, however, lifting the Champions League trophy three times altogether. To this can be added two Club World Cups.
Raul had a major hand in all Real's title successes. In 1999 and 2001 he finished as the league's leading scorer, a feat he repeated in the Champions League in 2000 and 2001. He also scored the winning goal in the 2-1 defeat of Brazilian side Vasco da Gama in the Intercontinental Cup final in Tokyo in December 1998.
With 66 goals, Raul is the all-time leading scorer in the Champions League. His goal haul in all European competitions stands at 68. The list of Raul's individual honours is a lengthy one, including five Spanish Player of the Year awards (1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002), two UEFA Bronze Shoes (1999, 2001) and IFFHS World Goalgetter in 1999. Raul was second in the poll for Europe's Footballer of the Year in 2001 and followed this up with a third place in the world player rankings in the same year. In the 2007/2008 season he was also named Player of the Year in La Liga.
Raul is a living legend in the national team, too. He made his international debut against the Czech Republic in October 1996, just two years after his first league appearance for Real. Since then he has scored 44 goals in 102 matches for his country, making him Spain's all-time leading scorer.
In the World Cup qualifier against San Marino on 12 October 2005 he surpassed the record set by Fernando Hierro, whom he succeeded as captain in 2002, as Spain's most capped outfield player. He was never to win a major title at international level, however. At the 2008 European Championship and the 2010 World Cup he was not a member of the Spanish squad.
As early as the 2007/2008 season Real decided to retire his number seven shirt whenever he left Madrid. His shirt will remain on sale at the club shop, however. Because one thing is certain - his achievements for Los Blancos will never be forgotten. Now, though, Raul is relishing the start of a new chapter in his prestigious career. In the number seven shirt, of course! Bienvenido en Alemania…
