The Players Behind the Shirt || Real Madrid No. 5
Source then Photoshopped
It's been a while since I last looked into some famous shirts (a list of which can be seen at the end of this post) so today, I've decided to take a look at Real Madrid's number 5 shirt.
Zinedine Zidane (Zizou), their current manager instantly springs to mind so let's have a quick look at who wore the shirt before this great player, and who's worn it since.
1995 / 1996 - Manolo Sanchís
1996 / 1997 - Manolo Sanchís
1997 / 1998 - Manolo Sanchís
1998 / 1999 - Manolo Sanchís
1999 / 2000 - Manolo Sanchís
2000 / 2001 - Manolo Sanchís
2001 / 2002 - Zinedine Zidane
2002 / 2003 - Zinedine Zidane
2003 / 2004 - Zinedine Zidane
2004 / 2005 - Zinedine Zidane
2005 / 2006 - Zinedine Zidane
2006 / 2007 - Fabio Cannavaro
2007 / 2008 - Fabio Cannavaro
2008 / 2009 - Fabio Cannavaro
2009 / 2010 - Fernando Gago
2010 / 2011 - Fernando Gago
2011 / 2012 - Nuri Şahin
2012 / 2013 - Fábio Coentrão
2013 / 2014 - Fábio Coentrão
2014 / 2015 - Fábio Coentrão
2015 / 2016 - Fábio Coentrão
2016 / 2017 - Raphaël Varane
2017 / 2018 - Raphaël Varane
2018 / 2019 - Raphaël Varane
2019 / 2020 - Raphaël Varane
2020 / 2021 - Raphaël Varane
I started this list with the most recent players and it's fair to say, until I reached Fabio Cannavaro, I thought I was selling a dud here. This could be due to my lack of knowledge regarding Spanish football, or it could be that most of these players are totally forgettable.
Varane broke into the Real Madrid team in his 1st season at the club in the 2011 / 2012 season having been signed from Lens for a reported €10m. A small fee considering they'd pay Jose Mourinho more than double that figure to sack him. It's only more recently that he's been a stalwart in defence which is probably why I don't know a huge amount about him. I included him in my UEFA Champions League Team but that's because I read that he'll score me lots of points. He didn't.
Fábio Coentrão is another player I've had to look up! This one cost €30m when signed from Benfica in 2011 and it's fair to say that I've never heard of him because he never really played!
We could gloss over Nuri Şahin but I won't, purely because I recognise the name! He had a forgettable loan at Liverpool the season after his forgettable season at Real Madrid.
Gago's another player I can't remember (notice a theme here? Perhaps I'll stick to English clubs in future), signed be Real Madrid as a youngster and initially showing promise. Until "Money Bags" Jose came along and binned him off.
Now let's get to the real quality. Fabio Cannavaro. Arguably one of the best defenders ever to have played football. Probably better known for his time in Serie A, he had 3 seasons at Real Madrid, winning La Liga twice. When I look at his Wikipedia page, the number of trophies he's won came as a massive shock:
- 1 FIFA World Cup
- 1 UEFA Cup
- 2 La Liga
- 2 Copa Italia
- 1 Supercoppa Italiana
For a Ballon d'Or winner to have won so little at club level seems remarkable.
Then we have Zizu. One of the greatest players of all time, best known for headbutting Marco Materazzi. He "only" spent 5 years at Real Madrid and in that time, in my opinion, gave the no. 5 shirt the iconic image that the players that have followed are trying to destroy (a bit like Manchester United's no. 7 since Ronaldo left. When he signed for Real, he cost a world record €77.5m, more than double Jose Mourinho's largest pay off.
I'm going to find it impossible to do Zidane justice, so I'll find a YouTube video that can try instead - It says a lot that you can have a video titled "Top 50 Magical Skill Moves". Notice how many players are left on their arse:
Source - TopPassion YouTube channel
If that doesn't put a smile on your face, there's probably some golf on that you can go and watch.
It would make sense to end the article here but I have 1 more player to mention, Manolo Sanchís. (I was so tempted to stop at this point and post it but thought that would be unfair.) Sanchis played over 500 games for Madrid over 18 seasons, having come through the team's youth system. He was a regular for almost his entire career and won 8 La Liga titles and 2 Champions Leagues. Only 2 other players have ever spent their entire career at Real Madrid - Chendo (1982 - 1998) and Santiago Bernabéu (1911 - 1927). You might recognise the latter's name without realising he was a player.
Previous Articles:
AC Milan No. 3 and No. 6
Barcelona No. 10
Liverpool No. 7
Manchester United No. 7