Raul Gonzalez wallpaper

Description: Raul Gonzalez Blanco was born on June 27th 1977 in Madrid, Spain. He was brought up in a modest quarter of the city, the colony of San Cristobal de los Angeles. Raul is a product of Atletico Madrid's youth system but was picked up by rivals Real during a financial slump at his former club. Real's coach Jorge Valdano introduced him to the... ( +expand to view full text )

Description: Raul Gonzalez Blanco was born on June 27th 1977 in Madrid, Spain. He was brought up in a modest quarter of the city, the colony of San Cristobal de los Angeles. Raul is a product of Atletico Madrid's youth system but was picked up by rivals Real during a financial slump at his former club. Real's coach Jorge Valdano introduced him to the starting lineup at 17, and the youngster did not disappoint scoring six goals in his first 11 games. In the summer of 1996, Spain's national coach Javier Clemente decided not to select Raul for Euro 96 because of his age. Raul's consistent scoring at the club level proved that he was the real deal and eventually earned him a spot as a striker in Spain's national side. At World Cup 98, Raul did little as his country failed to advance past the group stage, but his presence became more and more significant at Euro 2000 and World Cup 2002. On the club level, Raul's career has been far more productive. He helped with Real Madrid's journey to Champions League glory as they beat Juventus 1-0 at Amsterdam Arena during 1998. Two years later, Raul was once more on top of Europe as his team defeated Valencia.