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#3 Alfredo Di Stefano
Alfredo Di Stefano is arguably the best player in the history of Real Madrid and undoubtedly the most influential footballer the club has ever seen. Signed after a tussle with bitter rivals Barcelona, Di Stefano was an instant hit at Real Madrid. And the fans, who were spellbound by his genius wasted no opportunity to make him feel special.
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Nicknamed “The Blonde Arrow,” Alfredo Di Stefano featured for the club between 1953 and 1964. He was a prolific goalscorer, could create chances for his team-mates, and even had the ability to pitch in as a defender if needed. The Argentinian’s leadership skills were a treat for sore eyes, and it was under his tutelage that Real Madrid enjoyed its most dominant spell. With Di Stefano leading the charge, Real Madrid won five consecutive European Cups between 1956 and 1960. He scored in each of the finals, including a hat-trick in the 1959-60 summit clash.
Di Stefano played 396 official games for the club over 11 seasons, scoring 308 goals and winning a total of 18 trophies.
#2 Raul
Widely hailed as the “Prince of Madrid,” Raul Gonzales Blanco was the perfect personification of Madridismo. He was a fearless leader of the club and is one of the best forwards in the history of Spanish football.
Despite being hailed as a Real Madrid legend, Raul was first discovered by Atletico Madrid. In the 1992-93 season, Real Madrid swooped in and made him a member of the Real Madrid Youth team. A year later, in 1994, he started featuring regularly for the senior side. That same year, he played in his first Madrid derby, and scored a goal in Real Madrid’s 4-2 win. The Whites went on to win the La Liga title at the end of the season.
Raul spent 18 years in the Spanish capital, winning 16 trophies including three European Cups and six La Liga titles. He netted a total of 323 goals in 741 games across all competitions, maintaining a respectable ratio of 0.43 goals/game.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo
Arguably the most successful transfer in the history of football, Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Real Madrid from Manchester United in 2009. Los Blancos paid €94 million to get him on their books, which made him the most expensive transfer in history at the time. Now, 12 years, four Champions Leagues, two La Liga titles and ten other trophies later, the move looks like the bargain of the century.
The 2008 Ballon d’Or winner came with a big reputation. Unsurprisingly, the player wasted no time settling in, and straight away emerged as the team’s undisputed talisman. He went toe-to-toe with the genius Lionel Messi and even gave Real Madrid a leg to stand on against Pep Guardiola’s generational Barcelona side.
Between 2009 and 2018, Cristiano Ronaldo spearheaded countless Real Madrid comebacks, scored numerous last-minute goals, and always stepped up when his team needed him. He left Real Madrid for Juventus in the summer of 2018, on the back of an unprecedented Champions League three-peat. Ronaldo’s goal tally of 451 in 438 games is freakish, to say the least, and Real Madrid were lucky to have him as their iconic number 7.
Also Read: Ranking Real Madrid's 5 greatest players of all time
