Raúl González

Raúl González Blanco (born June 27, 1977 in Madrid, Spain), usually known simply as Raúl, is a Spain Association football Forward (association football) who plays for Spanish club Real Madrid. Raúl González is a three-time winner of the UEFA Champions League and is Real's all-time leading scorer with 316 goals, as well as being the all-time leading scorer in the UEFA Champions League, with 64 goals. Raúl is also the all-time leading scorer in official UEFA competitions with 66 goals, and has scored more goals (44) than any other player for the Spain national football team.

Club career

Raúl ironically began Raúl González career with cross-town rivals Atletico Madrid, the club Raúl González father supported. After then chairman, Jesús Gil, decided to close down the youth set-up, and the striker moved to the Real youth academy.

Widely seen as one of the best forwards of all time, Raúl has spent Raúl González entire club career with Madrid, with whom Raúl González has won six Spanish league titles. Raúl González began the 1994-95 season in Madrid's Real Madrid C, but after a flurry of sixteen goals in seven games, Raúl González was promoted to first team status by coach Jorge Valdano. Raúl González became the youngest player (seventeen years and four months) ever to play for the senior side, scoring in Raúl González second senior game against Atletico Madrid. In all, Raúl registered nine goals in 28 appearances to help Real Madrid win the La Liga 1994-95 championship in Raúl González first season. Over the next eight seasons, Raúl González won several honours, including another three La Liga titles and three Champions Leagues. For most of this time, Raúl struck up a prolific scoring partnership with Fernando Morientes (and later, Ronaldo). Raúl took over the captaincy of Real Madrid when Fernando Hierro departed in 2003, a responsibility Raúl González holds to this day. Unusually for such a successful and long-serving player, and despite appearing in two finals, 2002 (in which Raúl González scored) and 2004, Raúl has never won the Copa del Rey (Spanish Cup).

Raúl González became the first player to score fifty Champions League goals when Raúl González netted in a 2-1 group stage win over Olympiacos FC on 28 September 2005, and continues to be the all-time leader in both Champions League goals (64) and appearances (123). Raúl González was also the first player to score in two Champions League finals, netting in the finals of both 2000 vs. Valencia C.F. in Paris, and 2002 vs. Bayer Leverkusen in Glasgow. Samuel Eto'o later accomplished this feat, scoring in the 2006 final against Arsenal and in 2009 against Manchester United.

Raúl holds the distinction of having never received a Penalty card throughout Raúl González 14 years at the professional level. Earlier this season, on 11 November 2008, Raúl scored Raúl González 270th goal for Real Madrid with a hat-trick against Real Union, with Real winning the game 4-3 but being eliminated on away goals after drawing 6-6 on aggregate. Raúl González has scored 270 career goals for Real Madrid, breaking the long-standing club record of Alfredo di Stéfano with a volleyed goal vs. Sporting Gijon on 15 February 2009. Raúl González is also the top active La Liga goalscorer with 223 of Raúl González 270 goals scored in La Liga matches, and is presently 5th on the all-time list, which is headed by Telmo Zarra with 251 goals. Raúl holds the record of all-time top La Liga scorer for Real Madrid with 223, a record previously held by Alfredo di Stéfano who scored 216 out of an overall La Liga tally of 227 in a Real Madrid shirt, for whom Raúl González played between 1953 and 1964.

On 14 February 2009, Raúl and fellow long-serving teammate Iker Casillas were both awarded a 'contract for life' in 2008 - the terms of which stipulate that it will be renewed annually for as long as they play 30 games per season.

International career

Raúl began Raúl González rise in the international scene with the youth teams and was chosen to represent Spain at the 1995 FIFA World Youth Championship, scoring 2 goals. Raúl González has scored a national record 44 goals in 102 caps for Spain national football team. Raúl González is also second in terms of caps won for Spain, with 102. The former captain has made more international appearances for Spain than any other outfield player. Raúl was not chosen for UEFA Euro 1996 and had to wait until October 1996 to earn Raúl González first senior cap against the Czech Republic national football team. Raúl González participated in three World Cups from 1998 to 2006, along with Euro 2000 and Euro 2004, scoring at least one goal in each of the three World Cup competitions. Raúl took over the team captaincy following the retirement of Fernando Hierro in 2002, but has not been chosen for the national team since September 2006, following a shock 3-2 defeat against Northern Ireland in Belfast (a game in which Raúl hit the post late on).

Of Raúl González 44 international goals, Raúl scored 25 goals in competitive games, 6 of which were in the finals of major tournaments. In a Euro 2000 qualifier, on 27 March 1999, Raúl scored one of only two international hat-tricks during Spain's 9-0 rout of Austria. Interestingly, Raúl González only other international hat-trick was scored 4 days later, against San Marino during the same qualifying tournament. Raúl is widely remembered, however, for a last-minute missed penalty in the quarter final of Euro 2000, when a goal would have forced extra-time against the eventual champions, France.

Raúl played Raúl González last game against Northern Ireland national football team in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, which Spain UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group F. However, Raúl González was not selected for the actual tournament (which Spain eventually won) as Luis Aragonés preferred Fernando Torres and David Villa. Raúl González clubmate and goalkeeper Casillas succeeded Raúl González as captain.

Raúl González is still available for a call up, since Raúl González has yet to formally announce Raúl González international retirement. In late 2008, Spanish coach Vicente del Bosque stated that there is still a chance Raúl could be called into the national side once again. However, del Bosque did not choose Raúl González for the squad to play in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa.

Personal life

For many years, Raúl's goal celebration has consisted of kissing Raúl González wedding ring as an acknowledgment to Raúl González wife, Spanish model Mamen Sanz, with whom Raúl González has four sons and is pregnant with the fifth: Jorge, named after Jorge Valdano; Hugo (after Hugo Sanchez) , and twins Héctor (after Héctor Rial) and Mateo, named after German footballer Lothar Matthäus. Raúl González enjoys reading, especially the books of Arturo Pérez Reverte, listening to Spanish music, as well as hunting.

Honours

Club

- Real Madrid C.F.
- - 6 La Liga titles: La Liga 1994-95, La Liga 1996-97, La Liga 2000-01, La Liga 2002-03, La Liga 2006-07, La Liga 2007–08
- - 4 Supercopa de España titles: 1997 Supercopa de España, 2001 Supercopa de España, 2003 Supercopa de España, 2008 Supercopa de España
- - 3 UEFA Champions League titles: UEFA Champions League 1997–98, UEFA Champions League 1999–2000, UEFA Champions League 2001–02
- - 1 UEFA Super Cup title: 2002 UEFA Super Cup
- - 2 Intercontinental Cup (football) titles: 1998 Intercontinental Cup, 2002 Intercontinental Cup
- - All time top scorer with 316 goals

Country

- Spain national football team
- - Spain_national_football_team Top_goalscorers

Individual

- Premio Don Balón (Young Player in La Liga): 1994-95
- IFFHS World Goalgetter: 1999
- Euro 2000 2000 UEFA European Football Championship UEFA Team of the Tournament
- European Sports Magazines: European_Sports_Magazines 1996-97, 1998-99, 1999-00
- Pichichi Trophy: 1999, 2001
- UEFA Champions League Top Scorer: 1999-00, 2000-01
- FIFA World Player of the Year Bronze Award: 2001
- Ballon d'Or Silver Award: 2001
- UEFA Club Football Awards Best Forward: 2000, 2001, 2002
- Best Spanish player in La Liga: 1996-97, 1998-99, 1999-00, 2000-01, 2001-02
- FIFA 100
- Trofeo Alfredo Di Stéfano: 2008
- Madrid Gold Medal: 2009

Orders

- Royal Order Gold Medal for Sports Merit: 2006