He is the champion of the Champions. Raul Gonzalez Blanco’s story will forever be linked with that of Europe’s premier club competition; he is the tournament’s top scorer and record appearance holder, he has lifted the famous trophy on no less than three occasions and played his part in of some the most exciting games in the history of the championship. He is, as team-mate Christoph Metzelder described him recently, “Mr. Champions League.” So even though the forward’s hopes of a fourth final appearance evaporated at Old Trafford last night and he is set to miss out on next season’s competition due to Schalke’s lowly league position, this is no adios: Raul will be back.
