'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
#3: Arjen Robben (Real Madrid to Bayern Munich in 2009)
Arjen Robben was another precociously talented player who made a premature exit from the Santiago Bernabeu. Like Claude Makelele, Robben also blamed Madrid's then president Florentino Perez for his departure from the club in 2009.
In two seasons at Real Madrid, Robben didn't quite set the stage on fire, but his potential was there for all to see. The Dutchman scored only 13 goals in 65 appearances in all competitions for the capital club but played a key role in the team's play in the final third.
However, the reappointment of Florentino Perez as the new president in 2009 signalled a return of the controversial 'Galacticos' era. The Madrid strongman splashed the cash to bring in superstars Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United, Kaka from AC Milan, and then Karim Benzema and Xabi Alonso as well.
It meant that Madrid had to sell some players to balance their books, with Arjen Robben marked out to be one such player despite having a good pre-season with the club.
Robben did not win a trophy at Madrid and he looked at an uncertain future away from one of the greatest clubs in football history.
"The goal when I was there was to win the club's 10th European Cup, that was really the big dream for me. I played there for two years, but we didn't manage to win the trophy. When I left, it felt like a step back at that time", Robben told Marca in a later interview.
In an interaction with Diario AS just before playing his final game for Bayern Munich after a ten-season stint at the club, Robben said:
“Florentino Pérez returned as president and then bought Ronaldo and Kaka, Benzema and Xabi Alonso. They spent so much money and told us they needed to make some money with sales. For me it was a shame because I had a very good relationship with (former coach) Manuel Pellegrini, and maybe I had the best pre-season of my career," rued Robben.
“I found it difficult because of the change of president in Madrid – I really felt very comfortable there and played very well - but when politics comes into play and you don’t have a real chance, you must decide if you want to keep fighting or continue your career elsewhere,” Robben reflected.
As it turned out, the Dutchman soon made his way out of Real Madrid and arrived at German champions Bayern Munich. During a decade-long stay in Bavaria, the mercurial Dutchman, with a magical left-foot, scored 144 goals in 309 appearances in all competitions as he won a bevvy of team and individual honours.
Ahead of his retirement from professional football, Robben looked back fondly on a successful decade at Bayern where he realised his 'dream' of winning the Champions League, something he couldn't accomplish at Real Madrid:
“I wanted to prove I was good enough and my move to Bayern was the best decision of my career."
#4: Angel Di Maria (Real Madrid to Manchester United in 2014)
Angel Di Maria arrived at Real Madrid in the summer of 2010 after a £25 million move from Benfica.
Di Maria is a skillful left-footed winger who can also operate in the centre of the pitch, something he demonstrated to great effect under Carlo Ancelotti. Blessed with good vision and a lithe frame, the Argentine excels in creating scoring opportunities for teammates and is also adept with set-pieces.
During his four seasons with Real Madrid, Di Maria scored 37 goals in almost 200 appearances in various competitions for the club. The Argentine, who played a key role in Real Madrid winning their La Decima (10th title) in the Champions League, won five other titles during his stay in the Spanish capital.
However, he couldn't quite endure himself to the Madrid faithful. The relationship soured further when an injured Di Maria reportedly received a letter from the club's president Florentino Perez asking him to sit out of Argentina's 2014 FIFA World Cup final against Germany.
"A letter arrived from Madrid to tell me not to play. I ripped it up, I ignored it," recollected Di Maria in a later interaction.
As it turned out, Di Maria could not play the final, but his Real Madrid career was now all but over. A few weeks later, Real Madrid sold the player to Manchester United in a then Premier League record transfer of £56.7 million (€63 million).
However, Di Maria had an unhappy season with the Old Trafford club before made a move to Paris St. Germain where he rediscovered his mojo, as is apparent in his tally of 82 goals in 221 appearances in various competitions for the French club.
Six years later, Di Maria scored a memorable brace against his former club in a Champions League game and had little qualms about 'celebrating' his goals.
#5: Samuel Eto'o (Real Madrid to Mallorca in 2000)
Samuel Eto'o is one of a handful of players who have played for both Real Madrid and Barcelona.
However, it may not be known by many that the Cameroon striker was a Real Madrid man for two seasons. After making his professional debut with Leganes in 1997-98, Eto'o played his first and only La Liga game for Real Madrid the next season. In his next season, he played six more games but failed to open his tally for the club before he was sold to Real Mallorca for €27 million in 2000.
After four modest seasons with Mallorca, Eto'o moved to Barcelona where he enjoyed the most prolific spell of his club career. During five trophy-laden seasons at the club, Eto'o thrived in the company of Lionel Messi and Co. as he scored 130 goals in 199 appearances in various competitions.
With the Catalan giants, the Cameroonian striker was at his powerful and prolific best, displaying composure in front of goal and also an ability to play with other forwards as he won a plethora of individual and team honours. Eto'o was part of Barcelona's historic treble-winning 2008-09 team under Pep Guardiola before moving to Inter Milan.
Although his Real Madrid stint wasn't a successful or productive one, Eto'o alluded to the fact that the colour of his skin might have been one of the reasons why the then-teenager was shunted out of the club.
Years later, in an interaction with FC Inter News, Eto'o, who scored goals aplenty for the reserve team but failed to score for the senior team, opened up about his time at Real Madrid:
"I was not quiet. "When I was 16 and I was in the cantera (reserve team), nobody respected me. My comrades did not even greet me. They treated me like I was the last to arrive, despite the many goals I scored."
"The only people who have always believed in me were Fabio Capello and Italo Galbiati, who gave me the opportunity to train with the first team. I will thank them both for ever. I would bleed for them, and I was hungry for fame, money, and goals. I wanted to be somebody."
Eto'o concluded by saying that he never wanted to leave Real Madrid, something that could haunt the capital club as they were not patient enough with the precocious teenager.
"I never wanted to leave Madrid, but in that company I wanted to. I'll never understand the real reason. I have always done well. The only explanation is that perhaps the black men in that club were not loved."
