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It almost goes without saying that joining Real Madrid and donning the storied white kit before the Santiago Bernabeu crowd is the pinnacle of a player's footballing career.
After all, Los Blancos are easily one of the most celebrated clubs in the football world which can boast of an illustrious history owing to the ineffable success they have achieved since 1902 - the year the club was brought into being.
Apart from their glorious past, one more thing the Spanish giants are known for is the club's transfer activity. Over the last few years, Real Madrid have splurged big bucks in the transfer market to lure top-quality players which has also significantly contributed to an anomalous inflation we see today.
Consequently, the arrivals of innumerable top-notch footballers have also resulted in the departures of many other decent players.
Having said that, here is a starting XI featuring only players Real Madrid have sold/released and are currently active. So without further ado, let's dive straight in!
Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas (FC Porto)
Unlike several players on this list, Iker Casillas is a home-grown Real Madrid talent who virtually devoted his entire footballing career to Los Blancos. Having joined La Fabrica, Real Madrid's youth academy, during the 1990–91 season, Casillas earned his first call-up to the senior team squad at a tender age of 16 in November 1997.
Over the course of his 17-year stint, the Spain international starred in 725 matches for Real Madrid to become the second-most appearance-maker overall, 16 outings adrift of Raul.
On 11 July 2015, the now 37-year-old signed for the Portuguese club FC Porto after he was reportedly 'forced' out of the club by the president Florentino Perez. His exit sparked much controversy due to Real Madrid's conduct in the process.
Right-back: Juanfran (Atletico Madrid)
Under Diego Simeone's tutelage, Juanfran has blossomed into one of the most complete, consistent and reliable right-backs presently.
However, many do not know that the Spaniard began his initial footballing education at Real Madrid’s youth academy as a winger and later rose through the ranks to make six appearances for their first team.
He only managed six appearances for the Madrid-based club before being loaned out to Espanyol in the 2005-06 season and then being jettisoned to Osasuna in 2006. From there, he joined Real Madrid's bitter rivals Atletico Madrid in 2011 and did not take long to cement his position as a permanent fixture in Los Colchoneros' starting lineup.
Centre-back: Pepe (Beşiktaş J.K.)
Throughout his spell at Real Madrid, Pepe remained a controversial figure not because of his loyalty or passion for the club but in view of his skulduggery and ill-natured behavior. Nevertheless, he was still able to maintain his status as the first-choice center-back in tandem with Sergio Ramos for 10 years.
The former Porto ace left Real Madrid in 2017 and joined Besiktas on a free transfer following his falling-out with the club's top brass. After his departure, Pepe hauled Los Blancos over the coals:
“Madrid didn't offer me two years," the Portugal international said. “They just offered me one year, so it's clear that I'm not going to continue with Real Madrid. There are ways of talking and negotiating but the club hasn't acted correctly. That's annoyed me.
He even went on take a dig at the fans.
"Besiktas fans are fantastic. At times when playing for Real Madrid, we had to motivate ourselves as the fans were not so passionate. Here at Besiktas, every player heads onto the pitch fully motivated to perform well with the aid of great support".
Center-back: Raul Albiol (Napoli)
There has not been much outward movement when it comes to Real Madrid's heart of defence in the years gone by. Players such as Sergio Ramos, Pepe and Raphael Varane have dominated the aforementioned berth for the past few seasons so the selection has been quite hard for the centre-back position.
Raul Albiol of Napoli has come up trumps in our list having spent four years at Real Madrid. However, during his spell at Los Blancos, he failed to establish himself as a mainstay which led to his offloading in 2013 to Napoli for a fee reported to be in the area of €15 million.
Since then, he has gone from strength to strength to become the linchpin of The Blues' rearguard. Albiol has made 211 appearances for Napoli across all competitions to date.
Left-back: Fabio Coentrao (Rio Ave F.C.)
Fabio Coentrao was signed by his compatriot Jose Mourinho in 2011 from Benfica, but his Real Madrid career was largely hampered by recurring injuries that saw him being left out in the cold. During this stint, he even served multiple loan spells at Monaco and Sporting in 2015-16 and 2017-18 respectively.
Coentrao's contract was eventually terminated by Real Madrid in August 2018 and he returned to his boyhood club Rio Ave where he first started his career.
"I thought I needed to be happy and I lost a lot of money to get that happiness at [Rio Ave], a club that has always acted well and faithful to me. There is no money that can pay for happiness. I was born poor. I don't mind dying poor.”
Central midfielder: Asier Illarramendi (Real Sociedad)
The second-most expensive Spaniard that Real Madrid has ever bought, Asier Illaramendi’s time at the Bernabeu was rather forgettable. The now 28-year-old had stamped his authority as an exciting prospect by virtue of his showings for Real Sociedad before joining Real Madrid in 2013.
Unlike a number of other Real Madrid stars, Illarramendi was given 90 games to demonstrate his abilities but he failed to make the grade and was later unloaded back to Real Sociedad in 2015.
However, Illarramendi once again proved himself after rejoining Real Sociedad and is the fulcrum of their midfield. In the 2016-17 season, he had the second-highest number of interceptions across Europe's five major leagues behind only Chelsea's N'Golo Kante.
Central midfielder: Sami Khedira (Juventus)
Sami Khedira was signed by Real Madrid from Stuttgart after the German midfielder signed a contract until 2015. Although he was a prop in the club's midfield in the early years, he later fell down the pecking order with Carlo Ancelotti choosing to play his compatriot and new signing Toni Kroos in central midfield.
As a result, the boardroom allowed him to leave the club on a free transfer in 2015 and Juventus managed to strike while the iron was hot. The Italian club swooped in for the 2014 World Cup winner and the move turned out to be one of the shrewdest coups in The Old Lady's history.
Since joining them, Khedira has proved to be a vital component in Juve's midfield, helping the fans cease to remember the likes of Pirlo, Vidal and Pogba. Within only three years of his stay at Turin, the 31-year-old has inspired Massimiliano Allegri's side to 3 back-to-back Serie A and Coppa Italia titles.
CAM: Mesut Ozil (Arsenal)
On the strength of his standout performances in World Cup 2010, Mesut Ozil caught the eye of Real Madrid's president Florentino Perez who prised him away from Werder Bremen having beaten off interest from Barcelona, Arsenal, and Manchester United.
The former Schalke star quickly settled his place in Real Madrid's squad and established himself as the centerpiece of the team. Then, in 2013, Ozil suddenly decided to jump ship and agreed on a contract with Arsenal on a five-year deal.
"At the weekend, I was certain I would stay at Real Madrid but afterwards I realised I did not have the faith from the coach or the bosses. I am a player who needs this faith and that is what I have felt from Arsenal, which is why I have joined," Ozil said of the transfer.
The 29-year-old has been the bright spot of Arsenal for the past half-decade, is almost as prolific with the Gunners as he was with Los Blancos in terms of creating chances and engineering assists.
Right Winger: Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich)
Robben was excellent for Chelsea. He was excellent for Real Madrid too. But after shaking hands with Bayern, the Dutch winger reached new heights in his footballing career.
His signature move of making a marauding run through the right flank before cutting inside and leathering the ball into the top corner of the far post has always been a sight to behold. His partnership with Franck Ribery on the left flank is still intimidating irrespective of the back-line trying to resist their forays.
Bearing in mind Robben's age, his performances are astounding to say the least and can still shape the fortunes of any team.
Left winger: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
The bloke needs no introduction at all. Cristiano Ronaldo has been the flag-bearer for Real Madrid since he signed up for them in 2009 for a then world-record fee of £80 million.
Over the course of his 9-year stint, he developed himself into one of the two megastars who have collectively dominated the footballing scene for the past decade. In the 438 outings he made across all competitions, the Portuguese notched up a staggering 450 goals.
Ronaldo bade adieu to Los Blancos this summer following his switch to Juventus for a fee worth £99.2 million which made the transfer the highest ever for a player over 30 years old and the highest ever paid by an Italian club. Thus far, the 5-time Ballon d'Or winner has failed to register a single goal for Juventus.
Striker: Gonzalo Higuain (AC Milan)
It was difficult to choose between Alvaro Morata and Gonzalo Higuain for who gets to lead the line for this star-studded squad and it was the Argentine striker who came up trumps in our list.
Higuain abandoned Real Madrid in 2013 as he was not ready to play second fiddle to Karim Benzema who was a regular in Real Madrid's starting XI. In consequence, the now 30-year-old opted to make a move away from Santiago Bernabeu and joined Napoli on a five-year deal.
There, he grew into a first-rate center-forward and racked up 91 goals in 146 matches for The Blues. Later, Higuain was handed over to Juventus for €90 million, making it one of the most expensive football transfers of all-time.
The Argentina international continued his fearsome form at The Old Lady and recorded 55 goals within two seasons before earning a season-long loan deal to AC Milan.
As such, Higuain appears to be the ideal option to usurp the center-forward berth in this side.
