Today is the 25th anniversary of Raúl's first team debut for Real Madrid. It was against Zaragoza at La Romareda, the same stadium where he scored his last goal for the club.
To mark the occasion, Raúl looked back over the past quarter of a century and remembered his early days starting out as well as the best moments.
Debut
It was a one-off moment and it's the most special one because without it, I wouldn't have been able to go on and have the career that I dreamed of and which lasted so many years. All of the dreams I'd had about being a footballer came true on that day.
A lot of memories come to mind about where I lived, I was very young, I was pretty much a kid, and the dreams that I had from a really young age came true as I pulled on that shirt on 29 October in Zaragoza. When I see that shirt, a lot of memories about things I experienced as a child come flooding back。
Wearing the No. 7 shirt
In my first season, I wore the number 17 shirt, when the shirts had the players' names and numbers on the back. During [Fabio] Capello's time in charge, he took over in 1996, I already wore the number 7 and it was a bit of a responsibility because that shirt had been worn by Madrid legends whose names are etched into the memory of all madridistas.
It was always a constant responsibility, not only to wear the number 7 shirt but to wear the Real Madrid crest.
Best goal
Luckily, I scored a lot of goals, but I always remember my first one, just like I remember the shirt from 29 October, from my debut in Zaragoza. What really excited me was to be able to run out at the Bernabéu and score my first goal, which, to cap it all, was against Atlético de Madrid in a derby.
It was marvellous and incredible and came following a Laudrup pass. I'm able to remember it time and time again, as if I was watching it live right now.
And then there's the goal in the Intercontinental Cup and the ones I scored in the Champions League finals. I'm sure that many of them, in one way or another, helped the team to three points, or towards a LaLiga title or to edged us towards winning the Champions League.
Fortunately I managed to score a lot of goals, but the most important thing is the journey and the fact that I really enjoyed myself throughout my career.
Real Madrid
I grew up at this club, I joined when I was 15 and as well as in professional terms, Real Madrid have given me it all on a personal level.
The club has given my family and my parents everything, I then went on to have a family and my children live out every Madrid game with real passion. It's a mutual feeling in terms of what the club feels for Raúl, and what Raúl feels for the club".
Records
Records are there to be broken. I'm sure that someone will come along and break the appearances record.
I feel really pleased and proud about the many seasons that I spent at the club, the games I played, the trophies I won… I could likely have done more and we could have achieved more, but I enjoyed myself and, above all, I always tried to give my all.
I always tried to help my team mates, the coaches and the club and make the fans happy with every Real Madrid match they watched and that's the most important thing for me.