Francisco Gento passed away on Tuesday at the age of 88, Real Madrid said in an official statement. The honorary president appeared between 1953 and 1971 for the Royal and is, together with Marcelo, the most successful player ever in the service of the Madrilenians. In addition, he is the only player ever to win the European Cup I six times. In total Gento won 23 prizes.
“Paco Gento remains a benchmark for Real Madrid and for the sporting world. He will be remembered as one of the greatest legends,” the top Spanish club wrote in a statement. Gento started his career in 1952 with Racing Santander and moved to Real Madrid a year later. He played eight times in the final of the European Cup, of which he won six, and also won the league title twelve times with Real. In his fourteen-year international career, he made 43 appearances for the Spanish national team and was active in the World Cup in 1962 and 1966.
After the death of Alfredo Di Stéfano, with whom Gento played together at Real, he was named honorary president of Real Madrid. Gento is regarded in Spain as one of the greatest players of all time and one of the best players ever in his position. He was a fast left winger with overview and technical qualities. Gento won the league title with Real twelve times, won the Copa del Rey twice and won the European Cup six times. In total he won 23 prizes with the Royal, a record.
Gento held the record for most prizes for a long time, but has had to share this with Marcelo since Sunday. The left-back came in the final phase of the Supercopa against Athletic (2-0) for Vinícius Júnior and now also has 23 prizes to his name. Sergio Ramos, who left Real for Paris Saint-Germain last summer, is on 22 trophies. Marcelo can take over the record from Gento this season, as Real still have a chance to win the league title, the Copa del Rey and the Champions League.
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