15 Years In White: Raul Gonzalez

Fifteen years in white for Raul, and I would be lieing if I said I didnt have a man crush on him. I have three jersey’s with his name on the back, and when I was young I pretended I was Raul as I would run down the field with the ball and feint the keeper then finish cooly. His position has varied over the years, but no one can deny that he is probably one of the best finishers ever, and to add to that he is an all-around great guy, who is very religious and dedicated to numerous charitable activities.


His 15 years of service to club are of the highest order and he has been here through thick and thin. He will be the clubs leading scorer one day, and he is in the mold of so many past captains, a true leader of the team and was the face of the Spanish national team (as well as the countries all time leading scorer) until poor form saw him dropped. He has so far been in fine form, but I dont expect him to be recalled, Aragones is a nutter. Raul is the all time scorer in the Champions League, which is probably the most impressive stat he has to his name.

Theres very few players like Raul left in the world of football. Francesco Totti, Paolo Maldini and Ryan Giggs all are in a similar mold, dedication to one club, there boyhood club, that they have captained with distinction for years. My hope is that theres 5 more years of Raul at Real Madrid, then I will bet a large sum of money he starts coaching the youth teams like Michel is doing right now.

Requiste Raul tribute video:

Real Madrid’s Official Write Up For the Capitan:

Raúl’s 15th anniversary as a Real Madrid player

Raúl played for Real Madrid’s Under-17s when he joined the Club and, through the years, has become the team’s leader on and off the pitch. He’s also showcased his love for the Club and looked to achieve every possible personal and collective goal. Raúl’s been here for 15 years and he expects to remain many more.

On 20 September 1992, at 15 years of age, Raúl joined Real Madrid’s Under-17s, coming from the youth system of eternal rival Atletico Madrid. In his last season at Atletico he scored 55 goals, getting the Whites interested in him. Fifteen years have passed since then and the player has scored 452 official strikes with Real Madrid and 61 with Spain.

His first game as a Real Madrid player was against Alcalá, contributing to the 5-0 victory with one goal. He hasn’t stopped scoring since and has become the all-time top scorer of the European Cup (57) and the third in Real Madrid’s history (272) behind Di Stéfano and Santillana. In his second season at the Club he joined the Under-19s, eventually getting promoted to Real Madrid C in the 1994/95 campaign. That same year he made his debut with the first team against Zaragoza at La Romareda.
His goals and his drive have helped Real Madrid win five Leagues, three Champions Leagues, three Spanish Super Cups, two Intercontinental Cups and one European Super Cup. His excellent performances made him an unquestionable starter on the Spanish national team, becoming its captain after 44 fixtures. His impressive figures have made him one of the most important players in the history of Real Madrid, playing in 613 games -third in ranking after Santillana (643) and Sanchís (712)-.

The captain has had a brilliant start to the 2007/08 campaign so far. He’s recovered his position as a striker and has already scored three goals; two in the League against Atletico and Villarreal, and one in the Champions League against Werder Bremen.

Real Madrid’s 30th League title last season was the player’s fifth so far. Raúl is a true captain, a symbol of this Club, the player every new footballer on the team looks up to. Madridista above anything else, Raúl represents the values of this Club: drive, perseverance, work, humility, and human and football quality. In these past 15 years, Raúl has proved that the secret to his success is his devotion to the Club, to whom he still gives his all in every game.

My thinking is this season he is gonna be back to his old self. Which means some where in the 15-20 goal range in the league, plus another 5 in the CL. His position has sorta been restored to the hole, although he kind is all over the place, sometimes on the right flank. If he sticks in the hole behind RVN, he will score a crap load just like when he was partnered with El Moro.

2nd Requiste Raul tribute video:

My favorite is the screamer he hit against Barca in the CL, I was jumping up and down like a lunatic when I saw that, I was so proud to be wearing his shirt. My friends starred at me like I was an idiot, to this day they still make fun of me for that. In the Intercontinental Cup where he does nothing flashy, he is just so technically sound that he ends up beating all those players with a quick pull back or two. He scores some good ones against Atletico and Deportivo, and the one against Sociedad where he back heel flicks it over his head is incredible.

Thank you Raul for your 15 years of service. This weekend were up against Valladolid, who we absolutely smoked the last time we played them in the league 5-0, but that was like 3 or 4 years ago. Ill have a preview of that up later, enjoy candids of Raul.

Category: Editorial/Opinion

Tags: Editorial-Opinion, Jack Johnson, Man Crushes, Raul, Real Madrid, Vitamin Water

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