Spain's 5 most entertaining footballers of all time

Spain have been one of the frontrunners in international football since the turn of the millennium. With a fast-paced, pass-and-move style called 'tiki-taka', they conquered Europe as well as the World in terms of football.

Spain had one of the most successful runs for a national team between 2008-12. They won two consecutive UEFA Euros in 2008 and 2012 and also won the FIFA World Cup in 2010.

Spain's dominance at the highest level was backed by the talents of a fantastic coach in Vicente del Bosque. He built a formidable team for Spain consisting of players mainly playing for either Real Madrid or Barcelona. Special achievements like theirs would not have been possible without special and entertaining players.

On that note, we take a look at the five most entertaining Spanish footballers in history.

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#5. Sergio Ramos

Sergio Ramos excelled as the captain of both Spain and Real Madrid.

Sergio Ramos Garcia was born in Camas, Spain, in 1986 and began his career at his hometown club before moving to Sevilla's academy. He became a full professional with Sevilla before being spotted and signed by Real Madrid in 2005 for a record €27 million.

With Madrid, Ramos became a legend of the game. The defender won five La Liga titles, two Copa del Rey cups and four UEFA Champions League titles - three of which came back-to-back between 2015-2018. Ramos featured in 671 games for Los Blancos, scoring 101 goals and providing 41 assists - an incredible tally for a defender.

Ramos is a combative defender who engages in as many battles on the pitch as he does mind games. He is also known for his notorious streak of getting sent off. Sergio Ramos received a total of 26 red cards in his career - 10 more than any other player for any other club this century.

However, he also came up clutch and scored arguably the most important goal of his career in the Champions League final against Atletico Madrid in 2014.

The defender described the moment as his greatest ever, and possibly one of the most important moments in Real Madrid's history.

Ramos currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain in France. He will face his former club Real Madrid in the round of 16 in the Champions League in February.

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#4. Raul Gonzalez

Raul was widely regarded as the greatest Spanish striker for a long time.

Raul Gonzalez Blanco was born in Madrid, Spain, in 1977 and began his career with San Cristobal. He joined Atletico Madrid soon after, for a span of two years between 1990-92.

However, Atleti had to shut down their academy in 1993 due to financial constraints and the-then 16-year-old Raul joined Real Madrid's academy. Little did Atleti know what they had lost.

Raul made 741 appearances for Real Madrid, scoring 324 goals and providing 133 assists in all competitions. He was Real Madrid's all-time top scorer until Cristiano Ronaldo overtook him a few years ago. The Spain striker won six La Liga titles and three Champions League titles with Los Blancos during his tenure.

He played an integral part in Madrid's UCL triumphs in 2000 and 2002, providing 12 and nine goal contributions, respectively, in the winning years.

As his record shows, Raul proved himself to be one of the greatest big-game players ever. He became Real Madrid's all-time top scorer with a brace against their bitter rivals Atletico Madrid in 2009.

Raul left Real Madrid for German club Schalke 04 in 2010. He enjoyed a smooth stint with the club, scoring 40 goals and assisting 23 in 98 games. The Spain striker won the DFB Pokal and the DFL-Supercup with Schalke in 2011.

Raul currently works as Real Madrid Castilla's manager in Spain.

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#3. Xavi Hernandez

Xavi Hernandez was one of the most visionary central midfielders to play the game.

Xavier Hernandez Creus was born in Terrassa, Spain, in 1980 and began his youth career at a local club before joining Barcelona's La Masia academy in 1991. Xavi went on to become one of Spain's and Barcelona's greatest captains and players.

The former Spain captain's playing style was unique. Although he did not put up goals or assist numbers in most of the games he played in, Xavi's passing range, vision, technique and presence of mind was amazing to watch.

Here's a video montage of Xavi's incredible passing ability:

Xavi played 767 games for Barcelona, scoring 85 goals and providing 185 assists. During his tenure, he won eight La Liga titles, three Copa del Rey cups, two FIFA Club World Cups and four Champions League titles.

Xavi was also extremely successful with the Spain team, winning back-to-back Euros in 2008 and 2012, with their 2010 World Cup win sandwiched between European glory. No other player created more chances than the Spain midfielder's 30 at the 2010 World Cup.

Xavi is currently Barcelona's manager, having come full circle in his career. After a long period of consistent success and a golden generation, he has his task cut out for him to bring Barca back on track for the future.

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#2. Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres was a striker who could give any defender nightmares on his day.

Fernando Jose Torres Sanz was born in Fuenlabrada, Spain, in 1984. He played for various youth clubs before joining Atleti's academy in 1995. Torres signed his first senior contract with the club in 2001 and is most remembered for his first spell with Atletico and his stint at Liverpool.

Torres played 726 games in his career, scoring 256 goals and providing 80 assists. His pace, power and direct style of play made him one of the toughest players to defend against. He was reasonably two-footed, had a venomous shot and was good in the air as well. The only downside, unfortunately, was his injury record and the slumps in form he faced after recovering.

The striker was a key member of Spain's squad that broke their international trophy duck in 2008 at the Euros. Torres scored the only goal in the final to hand Spain a 1-0 win over Germany. Running onto a delicious through ball by Xavi, the Spain striker coolly lifted the ball over the onrushing goalkeeper to score.

The striker was in his prime during his Liverpool days (2007-11). He was a constant thorn in any defender's side and scored some wonderful goals over the course of his spell with the Reds.

You can watch a montage of a few of Torres' best moments in a Liverpool shirt below:

Fernando Torres currently works in Spain and is the manager of Atletico Madrid's U-19 side.

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#1. Andres Iniesta

Andres Iniesta was one of Spain's most creative and innovative midfielders.

Andres Iniesta Lujan was born in Fuentealbilla, Spain, in 1984 and began his youth career with Albacete before joining La Masia in 1996. Iniesta played the majority of his playing career at Barcelona and was a key member of their historic treble-winning sides of 2009 and 2015.

Iniesta, like Xavi, was a midfielder whose touches, movement, dribbling among others, showed his exceptional level. He has played 674 games for Barcelona, scoring 57 goals and providing 138 assists.

Iniesta also made 131 appearances for Spain, scoring 13 goals. However, no other goal among his 13 was as important as his extra-time winner against the Netherlands in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final.

Iniesta has won nine La Liga titles, six Copa del Rey cups, four Champions League titles and three Club World Cups with Barcelona. He was also part of Spain's squad that won the Euros in 2008 and 2012 and the World Cup in 2010.

Here is a montage of the Spain midfielder's exquisite dribbling technique:

Iniesta left Barcelona for Vissel Kobe in Japan in 2018. He currently still plays for the Japanese club and is slowly nearing 100 appearances for them.