5 players who left Real Madrid too soon

2. Claude Makelele

Like Mesut Ozil, Claude Makelele spent three years in the Real Madrid setup before being shipped to London, only for Real Madrid to potentially regret the sale. Unlike Ozil, though, Makelele was sold to Chelsea for a much more fruitful time.

Makelele is widely regarded as a Chelsea legend and one of the greatest midfielders to ever play in the Premier League. He was largely helped by former Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho taking the helm at Stamford Bridge and developing Makelele into a first-team staple.

From Real Madrid's perspective, it can easily be argued that Makelele was sold too soon. Had they kept ahold of him for a season longer, he would have proved his worth and shown glimpses that he would become the best midfielder in the world during his time.

In truth, though, this was something that Real Madrid could not foresee. After all, Makelele was a shell of the player at Real Madrid that he become at Chelsea. He did not show many signs of promise but unfortunately, he made Real Madrid look like bad judges of character when he excelled at Chelsea.

Continued on the next slide...