Before a certain Portuguese arrived, the name at the top of Real Madrid's scoring list was Raúl González. He got there with 323 goals in a white shirt, and he held the record until Cristiano Ronaldo passed it.
He was the most natural finisher of his generation, scoring with either foot, with his head and from positions other forwards would not have bothered with. He debuted for Real Madrid at 17 and became the youngest scorer in the history of El Clásico.
Three European nights
Raúl won the Champions League three times with Real Madrid, in 1998, 2000 and 2002, and he scored in two of those finals. For a while he was also the competition's all-time top scorer, with 71 goals, before that record was broken as well.
For Spain he earned 102 caps and scored 44 goals.
He was the heartbeat of Real Madrid for more than 15 years. Even Ronaldo's arrival and the rewriting of the record books have not erased what he meant to the club. The Prince of the Bernabéu ruled with goals, grace and a stubborn will to win.
Tomorrow: number 28.
