After what has been a resoundingly successful season for Real Madrid, it is natural for one to look back fondly at the team’s exploits and see who in particular were the impactful players that helped the team reach the pinnacle of European and Spanish football this year.
Players like Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, and Vinicius Jr. have all deservedly received their plaudits for their formidable play, along with a few other key members within the squad.
One of those members who have put their hand up and flourished is the team’s latest right-wing prodigy in Federico Valverde.
The young Spanish upstart has taken the necessary steps to solidify his spot within the team, providing Real Madrid with a potent front three that they can hopefully rely on over the next few seasons, despite Benzema’s advancing age.
It is no easy feat to hold one’s own at such a heralded role, especially when one considers the glittering stars that have played the position throughout the team’s history.
Today we get an opportunity to review five of the best ever right-wingers for the club in ascending order of importance, and just how they stack up in the annals of footballing history?
5: Angel Di Maria (2010-2014)
The current PSG winger enjoyed a successful four-year stint in the early 2010s for Los Merengues after a breakout World Cup 2010 campaign in South Africa for Argentina.
In 190 appearances for the club, Di Maria managed a respectable 36 goals and 84 assists in all competitions.
He was known for possessing the complete package, which included incisive passing balanced with a technical virtuosity that helped keep his attacking teammates in the hunt.
Di Maria’s game was not only reserved for the winger slot, as he was occasionally able to drop back and take on a more central midfield role as and when play dictated, lending Real Madrid even greater flexibility.
Under Jose Mourinho’s tutelage, the winger helped guide the team to a first La Liga championship after three seasons of dominance from La Liga rivals, Barcelona, in 2011-12. This was nicely complemented with twin Copa del Rey successes, a Supercopa de Espana, and a UEFA Super Cup in 2014.
2014 was a hugely important year for Di Maria as he provided the best of send-offs through his Man-of-the-Match performance in the UEFA Champions League final against city rivals, Atletico, which pushed the team into extra-time, and ultimately helped them secure the title.
4: Raymond Kopa (1956-1959)
A name that can quite easily get lost with the countless number of stars the club has featured over the years, Raymond Kopa, known fondly as “Little Napoleon” due to his French heritage, was an integral part of a Real Madrid side which dominated the 1950s.
In just three seasons with the club, the winger made 101 appearances and contributed 30 goals. He also played a key hand in helping the team complete the rare feat of winning three European Cups on the trot, while also securing two La Liga titles as well.
While he initially played as a central midfielder during his time with his former French club, Reims, he was quickly transitioned into a more attacking right-wing role to lend some balance to a team that contained former greats in Ferenc Puskas and Alfredo Di Stefano.
In his new position, the Frenchman was given vast territory to make dribbles from the right, or simply create space by allowing his fellow attacking players into the area to create some confusion for the opposition’s defence.
He was very much the prototype of Zinedine Zidane in the grace he brought to the game, and his ability to keep a ball after many a challenge. His play was so remarkable at times that he managed to secure a Ballon d’Or for his scintillating performance in the 1957-58 season.
3: Gareth Bale (2013-2022)
While he may be exiting the club under clouded skies, Gareth Bale‘s nine-year tenure was a tale of both ups and downs, mired ultimately by stratospheric highs, untimely injures and the odd controversy or two.
The Welshman made 258 appearances in all for the side, scoring a respectable 106 goals while also providing 67 assists.
Once the most expensive player on the planet after his highly documented transfer from Tottenham Hotspur FC after winning the PFA Player of the Year for the 2012-13 Premier League season, Bale’s role has changed widely over the years.
When he first arrived, he initially hit the ground running, netting goals at a respectable rate in his first three seasons before injuries reared their ugly head.
Over time, there was also a growing concern over his commitment to the club, especially in relation to some of the other interests he developed (“Wales, Golf, Madrid” anyone?).
For the more initiated though, Bale will forever be remembered for the crucial performances he had in some hallmark matches for the club.
The first of those was his game-winning goal in extra-time of the 2014 Champions League final which helped the club secure a title after 12 long years.
He also scored a famous goal in the 2014 Copa del Rey final, where he was released on the left flank and used his prodigious speed to push the ball past FC Barcelona’s Marc Bartra, before bee-lining to the net and beating the goalkeeper on the inside post.
However, his most famous performance arguably came in the 2018 Champions League final where he beat Liverpool’s goalkeeper, Loris Karius, twice in the game to hand Los Merengues the trophy.
One of those was a goalkeeper blunder and the other was a spectacular bicycle kick that will live long in the memory for years to come.
2: Luis Figo (2000-2005)
When Florentino Perez first became the club’s president back in 2000, he promised the team’s fanbase that he would bring the club back to prominence after some years of mediocrity by recruiting the very best talent in world football at the time, ushering in the period known by many as the “Galacticos era.”
Soon after, players of the ilk of Ronaldo Nazario, David Beckham and 1998 World Cup winner, Zinedine Zidane, were brought into the fold.
However, one of his most notable and controversial acquisitions was of the newly crowned Ballon d’Or winner, Luis Figo, who at the time was an integral member of the club’s nemesis, FC Barcelona.
Perez was able to tactfully orchestrate the transfer, which made the winger the most expensive player at the time.
Figo would subsequently hit the ground running, and in his five-year run with the club, the Portuguese international would score 45 goals and provide 58 assists.
The Portuguese international’s game revolved around his quickness, skill, and dribbling mastery which was ably supported by an array of deft feints and step-overs.
He was also blessed with a superb right foot as he was able to deliver pinpoint crosses into the goal for the likes of Ronaldo, Raul, and Fernando Morientes to latch on to.
During his tenure, he helped the club win two La Liga titles, two Supercopa de Espana titles, an Intercontinental title, a UEFA Super Cup, and a UEFA Champions League title in 2002.
1: Amancio (1962-1976)
For the younger readers out there, this one may come up as a surprise, as I am sure you will be wondering how a player whose prime years featured in the 1960s and 1970s could take out the likes of Figo, Bale, and Kopa for the top spot.
Well, Amancio was not just any player. The Spaniard, who scored 141 goals in 408 appearances, undoubtedly holds his own as one of the greatest to ever feature for the club.
He was one of the cornerstones of a ruthless team that won six consecutive La Liga titles in his first six seasons with Los Blancos.
He would later add on three more to make it nine league titles in total, along with three Spanish Cups and a European Cup to complete his burgeoning war chest.
Known popularly by his nickname, “The Galician Wizard,” Amancio was blessed with top-notch speed and a penchant for dribbling past defenders with relative ease.
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He was spoiled for choice in terms of his teammates as he transcended a side that would be colloquially known as the “Ye-Ye’s” which dominated the Spanish footballing scene in the 1960s.
And he wasn’t all about crosses and dinks into the box either, as he twice held the Pichichi for being the top scorer in the 1969 and 1970 league campaigns.