40 shades of white: Raul Gonzalez Blanco

MADRID, SPAIN - AUGUST 22: Raul ex player of Real Madrid is thrown in the air by ther teammates of Al Sadd after the Santiago Bernabeu Trophy match between Real Madrid CF and Al-Sadd at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on August 22, 2013 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images)
MADRID, SPAIN - AUGUST 22: Raul ex player of Real Madrid is thrown in the air by ther teammates of Al Sadd after the Santiago Bernabeu Trophy match between Real Madrid CF and Al-Sadd at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on August 22, 2013 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
(Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images) /

Life after Madrid

Raul joined Schalke from Madrid in 2010, as he would score 40 goals in just two season in Germany, teaming up with former teammate Klaas-Jan Huntelaar to lead Schalke to a German Cup win and a Champions League semi-final berth. After an emotional testimonial, he moved to Qatari side Al Sadd, leading them to a league title in 2013. He joined his last club, New York Cosmos in 2014 and played one season there. His last game was a win in the final of the Soccer Bowl, his 23rd career honor. In November 2015, Raul Gonzalez Blanco retired from football. He had just turned 39.

I finish this article with a quote from Jorge Valdano, the man who gave Raul his debut all those years ago. This quote describes Raul more eloquently than I could and who better to give a conclusion on everything about Raul’s glimmering career than the man who started it all:

"“If you wrote a list of Raúl’s qualities, it would be a list of the values of Real Madrid. He is the Di Stéfano of our time. He is the people, the incarnation of Madridismo.”"

Next: Could Mariano Diaz be leaving Real Madrid this summer?