If you believe all of the Raul Jimenez transfer rumors, you’d be convinced the Mexican international is headed to Barcelona and then Real Madrid and for good measure back to England to play for Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal.
Of course, these are all rumors, likely entirely baseless because what else are tabloid reporters supposed to write about at a time like this?
But Jimenez did respond to a couple of the rumors to ESPN Deportes this week.
“If you tell me that tomorrow an offer from Real Madrid or Barcelona comes, it is obvious that you do not let such an opportunity go,” Jimenez said, before reiterating his commitment to Wolverhampton, currently sixth in the Premier League.
Rumors of a Mexican striker moving to Real Madrid conjure up two images.
Most recently, we remember Chicharito’s cup of coffee with Los Blancos on a one-year loan. He scored nine goals in the Spanish capital and had a few moments to remember, but never really made a huge impact.
Then of course there’s the legendary Hugo Sanchez, who played for Real Madrid from 1985-1992.
And we’ll use any excuse to show Hugo Sanchez highlights.
If there’s any club that’s got a history of incredible goal scorers, it’s Real Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo leads the pack with 450. The Top 10 also includes iconic players such as Alfredo Di Stefano, Ferenc Puskás, Raúl and Karim Benzema.
Sanchez scored 208 goals in 282 appearances for Los Merengues, ranking seventh all-time in club history. With a goal every 0.74 matches, only Ronaldo, Di Stefano and Puskás scored at a greater rate than Hugol.
Add in his goals while at Atlético Madrid and Sanchez is LaLiga’s fourth-highest goal scorer all time, trailing only Lionel Messi, Ronaldo and Telmo Zarra. Hugol won the Pichichi as LaLiga’s top scorer five times (that’s two more than Ronaldo).
But more than any player in Madrid history — and perhaps any player anywhere — the Pentapichichi scored the most spectacular goals you’ll ever see.
A couple years ago when Ronaldo scored that bicycle kick, we were quick to point out how far the Portuguese striker has to go to match Hugol, whose “chilenas” are a sight to behold, even today.
Sanchez was also one of the most prolific scorers in El Clásico with 10 goals, putting him in the Top 10 despite only playing seven seasons with Real.
For all the Raul Jimenez transfer rumors, it’s unlikely the 28-year-old striker will ever emulate the iconic Hugo Sanchez, even if he made a dream move to Real Madrid. But if he could score just one goal that would crack the following Top 10 of Hugol’s greatest hits, we’d consider that a cracking success.
