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As a club with a rich footballing history, Real Madrid has been a dream destination not just for Spanish players, but for players from all across the globe. While the Los Blancos academy has produced some of the world’s best players over the years, Madrid has also attracted some of the best footballing talent in the world. However, it is since the turn of the millennium that Los Blancos have really become synonymous with star power.
It was in the early 2000s that the term “Galacticos” first became popular, as Ballon d’Or winners like Zidane, Figo, and Ronaldo and other big-name purchases like David Beckham and Michael Owen arrived in Madrid during this time. A few years later, the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, and Gareth Bale were pulling on the famous white shirt, signed for world-record fees.
To this day, if there are rumours surrounding the transfer of a top footballing talent, you can be sure that the name of Real Madrid will be mentioned at some point as a possible destination.
However, signing for Real Madrid is not in itself a guarantee of success - you still have to perform, or else risk getting lost among the litany of stars either currently on the books or those who have represented the club in the past. As it happens, several current-day footballers have gone down that path.
Although they represent other clubs at the moment to varying degrees of success, their time spent at the Santiago Bernabeu is somehow obscured from public memory among the glitz and glamour that surrounds the club. With that being said, here are 5 players that you (probably) forgot played for Real Madrid.
Also Read: 10 greatest Real Madrid players of this century
5. Fabinho
As one of the most skilled defensive midfielders in the Premier League, if not the world, Fabinho has garnered much attention for his excellent displays in a Liverpool shirt. However, most football fans only know him from his time at AS Monaco, and not many are aware of his loan stint at Real Madrid during the 2012-13 season.
He joined up with the Real Madrid B team in June of 2012 on loan from Rio Ave and impressed enough to earn a call-up to the senior side towards the end of the season. He was given his debut in a 6-2 win over Malaga by Jose Mourinho and even registered an assist for Angel di Maria during his time on the pitch.
However, that was to be Fabinho’s only appearance for Los Blancos, and he returned to Portugal at the end of the season before making his way to Ligue 1 with Monaco. As part of a young and exciting side there, Fabinho helped Monaco win the Ligue 1 title in 2016-17 before making the move to Liverpool in a deal worth £44m where his ability to transition from defence into attack has made him one of Jurgen Klopp’s most valuable assets.
4. Marcos Alonso
A graduate of the Real Madrid academy, there was a time when Marcos Alonso was considered to be the future of the club. However, due to the options available on the Madrid bench at the time, he never really tasted regular first-team action and was forced to seek a move elsewhere for playing time.
Alonso made the step up to the senior side from the B team in 2009 and made his solitary appearance for the club in April of the following year, brought on by Manuel Pellegrini to replace Gonzalo Higuain in the 90th minute of a 2-0 win away to Racing Santander.
A move to England with Bolton Wanderers followed, where he became a first-team regular before moving to the Serie A with Fiorentina in 2013. He was lured back to the Premier League for a loan spell with Sunderland in 2014 before completing a permanent move back to England with Chelsea in 2016, where he still plays.
While his defensive displays leave much to be desired, Alonso’s attacking output is up there with the best in the league. The Spanish international was an integral part of Antonio Conte’s title-winning Chelsea side in 2016-17 and has lifted the FA Cup and the Europa League with the Blues as well.
3. Willian Jose
Although Willian Jose has a long way to go before he can be considered a household name, he has garnered a lot of media attention this season after his exploits with Real Sociedad saw him linked with a host of big-money moves.
A move to Tottenham Hotspur seemed likely in the summer as well as in January, while Barcelona were also looking at him in January before eventually moving for Leganes frontman Martin Braithwaite. Amidst all this speculation, it’s easy to forget that the Brazilian striker was on the books at Real Madrid in 2014, and even made a first-team appearance for Los Blancos in the league.
It was during one of seven loan spells from Uruguayan club Deportivo Maldonado that Willian Jose joined Real Madrid in 2014, where he was only intended to play for the reserves. However, a string of fine performances saw him called up to the senior side by Jose Mourinho, who sent him on for his solitary appearance in April of that year.
However, Jose’s displays weren’t enough to earn a permanent move to the Spanish capital, and he returned to Uruguay for a couple more years before making the switch to Real Sociedad in 2016. He has scored against Real Madrid since, and might well be on the move yet again in the summer.
2. Emmanuel Adebayor
In January 2011, Real Madrid were on the lookout for a striker to replace Gonzalo Higuain, who was out for several months with a back injury. After their efforts to lure Ruud van Nistelrooy and Miroslav Klose to the Bernabeu were unsuccessful, Los Blancos moved for Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor, who joined till the end of the season.
The former Arsenal man scored five goals in 14 appearances in Madrid colours before returning to England at the end of the season, turning out for Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace before moving to Turkey in 2017.
The nomadic striker has recently signed for Paraguayan side Olimpia Asuncion, claiming that ex-Manchester City team-mate Roque Santa Cruz and the club president's six-year-old son were the major influences for his move.
Although Adebayor’s time in Madrid is largely unremarkable, the circumstances surrounding his departure were mildly interesting. The Togo international, who has a notoriously strained relationship with his family, insinuated in an interview that a letter from his late brother urging Real Madrid not to keep him on at the club played a part in his exit.
1. Juan Mata
One of the world’s most universally-liked footballers, Juan Mata has been a firm favourite of the fans wherever he has played. A supremely gifted attacking midfielder with an eye for goal and an excellent passing range, Mata boasts a glittering trophy cabinet, having won major honours throughout his club and international career.
However, it all started in Madrid - a graduate of Real Madrid's youth academy, Mata played regularly for Real Madrid Castilla in the 2006–07 season before joining Valencia in the summer of 2007 in the search of first-team football.
He soon became an integral part of the club's midfield, winning the Copa del Rey in his first season. During his time at Valencia, he was also part of the Spain side that lifted the 2010 World Cup, which further boosted his stock and prompted Chelsea to move for him in August 2011.
He lifted the Champions League and the FA Cup in his debut season, adding a European championship with Spain in 2012 before winning the Europa League in the 2012-13 season. At this time, Mata and his Chelsea teammate Fernando Torres became the first players to hold the Champions League, Europa League, World Cup, and the European Championships simultaneously.
However, after falling down the pecking order at Chelsea, Mata was sold to Manchester United in January 2014, where he has picked up another FA Cup and Europa League.
Also Read: 3 players who need to leave Real Madrid to kick-start their careers
