Five who played for both: Real Madrid and Juventus | OneFootball

Real Madrid and Juventus meet in a blockbuster encounter at the FIFA Club World Cup this evening.

The most decorated clubs in Spanish and Italian football history go head-to-head for a place in the quarter-finals. Some of football’s greatest-ever names have represented the clubs, with a select few turning out for both teams.

We’ve looked at five of the best players to have played for Real Madrid and Juventus.

Five who played for both: Real Madrid and Juventus

Michael Laudrup

Michael Laudrup joined Juventus from Brondby in 1983, initially spending two seasons on loan at Lazio due to the foreign player rule in Serie A. He impressed alongside Michel Platini to win the Scudetto in 1985/86 but failed to adequately replace the Frenchman following Platini’s exit.

After 152 appearances and 36 goals, Laudrup left for Barcelona where he formed part of Johan Cruyff’s ‘Dream Team’ in Catalonia. Four consecutive La Liga titles and some magical football followed, before a controversial switch.

Laudrup moved to Real Madrid after a fall-out with Cruyff and helped the club regain the title after a period of Barcelona dominance. Despite the switch, the Dane remains hugely respected on both sides of the El Clasico divide.

Zinedine Zidane

One of the greatest footballers of all time, Real Madrid broke the world transfer record by signing Zinedine Zidane from Juventus in 2001. The Frenchman had thrived since moving to Italy from Bordeaux, where he helped Juventus to two Serie A titles and inspired France to World Cup and European Championship success.

As part of the Galactico project at Real Madrid, he was one of four Ballon d’Or winners to move to the Spanish side between 2000 and 2004.

His debut season ended with Champions League success and, fittingly, Zidane was the hero. The marquee addition scored arguably the finest Champions League final goal with a sweet volley to sink Bayer Leverkusen.

A record three-time FIFA World Player of the Year, he was inducted into the Real Madrid Hall of Fame in 2014 and named in Juventus’s best-ever XI in 2017.

Fabio Cannavaro

One of just three defenders to win the Ballon d’Or, Cannavaro spent three seasons each with Juventus and Real Madrid.

He joined Juventus from Inter Milan in 2004 and helped the side to successive Serie A titles, being named Serie A Footballer of the Year during their 2006 triumph. However, both titles were revoked in the wake of the club’s involvement in the Calciopoli scandal and Juventus were relegated to the second tier.

Cannavaro was part of a mass exodus and, fresh from captaining Italy to World Cup success, moved to Real Madrid. During his time in La Liga, the centre-back helped Los Blancos to league title successes in 2006/07 and 2007/08. After leaving the Bernabeu, he returned to Juventus for a single season before concluding his career at Shabab Al Ahli.

Gonzalo Higuain

Real Madrid have a long history of unearthing exciting South American talent and Gonzalo Higuain made his name with the club after arriving from River Plate.

The Argentine took two seasons to settle but exploded in output in 2008/09. He netted 24 goals in all competitions that season, one of three 20+ goal league campaigns with Los Blancos. Higuain scored 107 league goals in just 129 starts for Real Madrid but competition from Karim Benzema led to his exit.

He moved to Napoli and was an instant hit in Italy, scoring prolifically. Higuain scored 71 league goals over three seasons, including a Serie A record 36 in 35 games in 2015/16. That form led to €90m move to Juventus, an Italian record transfer fee at that time.

The goals initially continued to flow as Higuain won three league titles in Turin, netting 66 times across three seasons in all competitions. After falling out of favour, he spent time on loan at AC Milan and Chelsea before moving to MLS with Inter Miami.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo’s record-breaking career took in unforgettable stops in Madrid and Turin.

The Portuguese superstar, incredibly, scored over a century of goals for Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus.

Ronaldo is Real Madrid’s record scorer with a barely believable 450 goals in 434 games, justifying the Spanish side’s decision to spend a world-record £80m on his signature in 2009.

Nine stunning seasons in Spain brought two league titles and four Champions League trophies among his honours, alongside extending his Ballon d’Or count to five. Ronaldo moved to Juventus in 2018, where he won two Serie A titles. He is the only player to finish seasons as leading scorer in England, Spain and Italy.

Read – Iconic Performances: The night Zinedine Zidane dominated Brazil

See more – Five of Cristiano Ronaldo’s greatest goals

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