Real Madrid Legend Raul moves to Schalke
After announcing his departure from Real Madrid, Spain’s all time top goal scorer has signed with Schalke, where he has agreed to a two year deal subject to a medical. Bundesliga side, Schalke, have been looking for the Real Madrid Legend’s signature for a while now, with Coach Felix Magath maintaining that Schalke should be the club of choice for Raul as the German club are making strides under his leadership.
Raul has spent his entire football career with Real Madrid, where he scored 323 goals in 741 appearances for the club in a career spanning 16 years. In 2008, Raul signed a Life Contract with the club, which meant that his contract would be extended every year as long as he had 30 appearances for the club, which he managed in the last term.
Following Jose Mourinho’s appointment at Real Madrid and the influx of a number of high quality younger players such as Ronaldo and Kaka, Raul maintaining a position in the starting line-up looked very difficult, and it seems this is why the highest goal-scorer of all time for Real Madrid chose to move on.
Although he was linked with a number of clubs in the Premier League, Raul has decided to move to Germany where he is likely to end his career. The 33 year old can still play at the highest level and will have a lot to offer to Schalke.
Currently, Raul is the highest goal scorer in the UEFA Champions League and with Schalke he can add to his goals tally which currently stands at 66. He is also the all time leader in appearances in the competition with 128 games played. This may have been pivotal in his decision to choose Schalke over the other clubs such as Blackburn Rovers as the lure of the Champions League which is something the Spanish International could not turn down.
Schalke coach Felix Magath was understandably enthusiastic with Raul’s decision to sign with the club and described his new signing as an extraordinary player. Speaking on the club’s official website, Magath went on to say that "This is great news for Schalke 04. I'm absolutely delighted that we've managed to lure a player like Raul to the Bundesliga and to Schalke. He's a world-class forward and an extraordinary player"
"His qualities will help us take the next step in our development as a club. His capture is decisive in our ambition to rebuild the squad and to prepare the team for the future. I'm looking forward to working with Raul"
Schalke finished runners up to Bayern Munich in the league last season and Felix Magath will be hoping Raul’s addition to the squad can help him make up the difference between them and the Munich side. The Champions League is also an important objective for the Gelsenkirchen side and Raul’s experience in the competition, as well as his impressive goal scoring record, is likely to be crucial to the team’s success in a competition which they have struggled with in recent years.
The league season is also likely to be difficult with Bayern Munich looking to strengthen one of the strongest sides in the world, as well as Bayer Leverkusen adding their former player, Michael Ballack, which is likely to provide one of the tightest league campaigns in the history of the Bundesliga.
Tags: