Four years without Gento

On 18 January 2022, Real Madrid said goodbye to Francisco Gento, a key figure in the history of our club and a legend of world football. He played for Real Madrid for 18 seasons, from 1953 to 1971, and his extraordinary list of honours includes six European Cups. He is the first footballer to achieve this milestone in Europe's top competition. He also won 12 leagues, one Intercontinental Cup, two Latin Cups, two Spanish Cups and one Small World Cup.

At the time of his death, he was 88 years old and was the honorary president of Real Madrid, a position to which he was elected in 2016 for his extraordinary contribution to the club. Gento was the first Real Madrid player to reach 600 official matches, in which he scored 182 goals. With his powerful physique and incredible speed, he became the best left winger in the world.

He was also the link between two legendary generations at Real Madrid: he was in the team that won five consecutive European Cups between 1956 and 1960 and then captained the Real Madrid team that won it again in 1966. Alongside Kopa, Rial, Di Stéfano and Puskas, he was part of one of the most important forward lines in the history of football. He also scored in two European Cup finals. In the Segunda, he made it 2-0 against Fiorentina at the Santiago Bernabéu. He was even more decisive in the Tercera, when his goal in extra time sealed a hard-fought victory against Milan.

Click here to read article