Raúl González Blanco
Raúl González Blanco (born June 27, 1977 in Madrid, Spain), renowned simply as Raúl, is a Spanish association football (soccer) striker. Raúl is currently the team captain for the famous European football club Real Madrid, and has been playing there professionally since the start of the 1992/1993 season. He has also played 102 games with Spain, and is the all-time top goal scorer on the national side, having attained 44 goals as of today.
Raúl has performed with the Spanish national team in the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Euro 2000, the 2002 FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Euro 2004 and the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. "El Angel del Madrid," (The Angel of Madrid)as he has been nicknamed by his fans and the media alike, is presently the 7th highest goal marker in Spain's association football history, with 196 goals and 466 appearances. Having composed all these goals for his club, Raúl is Real Madrid's all-time 2nd top goal scorer.
He is oftentimes also nicknamed "El Siete" (The Number Seven) and "El Capitán" (The Captain). He has been wearing the #7 jersey for first team duty since he was only 17 year old. His current contract with the club runs until 2010.
Biography
Titles and Accolades
La Liga: 1994/95, 1996/97, 2000/01, 2002/03, 2006/07
Champions League: 1997/98, 1999/00, 2001/02
Intercontinental Cup: 1998, 2002
European Super Cup: 2002
Spanish Super Cup: 1997, 2001, 2003
Spanish Sportsman of the Year: 2007
Royal Order’s Gold Medal for Sports Merit: 2006
FIFA 100 Greatest Living Footballers: 2004
King’s Cup Top Scorer: 2003/04
UEFA Club Football Best Forward: 2000, 2001, 2002
UEFA Champions League Top Scorer: 1999/00, 2000/01
FIFA World Player, Bronze: 2001
European Footballer of the Year, Silver: 2001
Pichichi Trophy: 1998/99, 2000/01
Bronze Boot of Europe: 1999, 2001
Spanish Player of Year: 1996/97
Spanish Outstanding Sportsman: 2000
IFFHS World Goalgetter: 1999
Intercontinental Cup Man of the Match: 1998