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Raúl (footballer)

Raúl
Raul Gonzalez 2012 2.jpg
Raúl in 2012
Personal information
Full name Raúl González Blanco
Date of birth (1977-06-27) 27 June 1977 (age 39)
Place of birth Madrid, Spain
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Playing position Striker
Youth career
1987–1990 San Cristóbal
1990–1992 Atlético Madrid
1992–1994 Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1994 Real Madrid C 7 (16)
1994 Real Madrid B 1 (0)
1994–2010 Real Madrid 550 (228)
2010–2012 Schalke 04 66 (28)
2012–2014 Al Sadd 39 (11)
2014–2015 New York Cosmos 28 (8)
Total 683 (275)
National team
1994 Spain U18 2 (4)
1995 Spain U20 5 (3)
1995–1996 Spain U21 9 (8)
1996 Spain U23 4 (2)
1996–2006 Spain 102 (44)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Raúl González Blanco (Spanish pronunciation: [raˈul ɣonˈθaleθ ˈβlaŋko]) (born 27 June 1977), known as Raúl, is a retired Spanish footballer who played as a striker. Raúl is considered one of the most important players in the history of Real Madrid, and regarded as one of the greatest Spanish players of all time.

Raúl was born in the San Cristóbal de los Ángeles neighborhood of Madrid where he played for the local youth team before moving to the Atlético Madrid youth team. He later moved to Real Madrid's youth academy and played at its various levels. In 1994, he signed his first professional contract with the fourth division team Real Madrid C and then was swiftly promoted to the first division team.

He spent 16 years of his career playing for Real Madrid and is the club's second all-time top goalscorer with 323 goals. Raúl is also the most capped player in the history of the club with 741 appearances, ahead of Sanchís. With Los Blancos, he won six La Liga titles, three UEFA Champions League titles, scoring in two finals, four Supercopa de España titles, one UEFA Super Cup and two Intercontinental Cup. He is the third highest goalscorer in Champions League history, behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, and the fifth most capped player. In 2003, he was appointed captain of the team and retained that position until his departure from the club in 2010.


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Wikipedia

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