Paco Gento

Club career Gento (right) and John Charles of Juventus exchange pennants before their European Cup clash in 1962.

Gento debuted in the Primera División with Racing Santander in the 1952–53 season. He was still playing mostly for the B team at Santander when a flu virus saw him promoted to the first team ahead of a home game against Real Madrid. Such was his performance in the match, that Madrid signed him three days later.

La Galerna del Cantábrico (The Gale of the Cantabrian Sea), as he was known, played outside left and was noted for his exceptional pace, his skills with the ball and his scoring prowess from the midfield position. Gento captained Real Madrid from 1962 until his retirement in 1971 and was the leader of the young side known in Spain as Ye-yé. The nickname "Yé-yé" reflected the team's association with the youth culture of the 1960s, popularized by the rise of musical groups such as The Beatles. Gento, first from the right, front row, with Los Blancos in 1965. Gento did not score in his first season and was under pressure from club president Santiago Bernabéu. The president was won over by Di Stéfano's argument "he is quick and hits the ball like a cannon. That can't be learned, it's innate. We can teach him the rest". Among other honors, Gento won the European Cup a record six times with Real Madrid between 1955 and 1966 being the only Madrid player to figure in all of the wins (a record since equalled by Nacho, Luka Modrić and Dani Carvajal). He contributed with 31 goals in 88 European Cup career matches.

Gento played in eight European Cup finals, with a 6–2 record, and he also appeared in a ninth European final appearance in the 1970–1971 Cup Winners' Cup final that Real Madrid lost to Chelsea. He holds this record jointly with Milan's Paolo Maldini, who has an inferior 5–3 record. Gento's legendary Real Madrid teammate, Alfredo Di Stéfano's 5–2 record comes third. Domestically, Gento collected 12 La Liga titles during his time with Madrid.

After he retired from football in 1971, he coached various lower-league teams, such as Castilla, Castellón, Palencia, and Granada. In 1978–79, he led Palencia to promotion to the Segunda División for the first time in their history. He later took up a role as an ambassador for Real Madrid throughout Europe, alongside Di Stéfano. After Di Stéfano died in 2014, Gento became the honorary president of the club.

International career

Gento played for the Spain national team from 1955 to 1969, winning 43 caps and scoring five times. His debut came on 18 May 1955 in a 1–1 draw with England in Madrid. He was initially known as "La tercera G" (the third G) for succeeding Agustín Gaínza and Guillermo Gorostiza in his position. His rival for his position was his friend Enrique Collar of Atlético Madrid, and the pair played together at the 1962 FIFA World Cup in Chile.

In 1964 European Nations' Cup qualification, Gento was included alongside Collar under new manager José Villalonga, but was dropped after a home defeat to Belgium on 1 December 1963; Carlos Lapetra took his place for the finals which Spain won. Due to improved form and fitness in the second half of the 1965–66 season, he was recalled for the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England, playing all three games of a group-stage elimination.

His nephews were also athletes – José Luis Llorente and Toñín Llorente (es) played basketball, whilst Paco Llorente and Julio Llorente were footballers. Grand-nephew Marcos Llorente, son of Paco Llorente, is also a footballer.

Gento died in his sleep on 18 January 2022, at the age of 88.

Real Madrid announced in a statement that "he will always be remembered by Madridistas and all football fans as one of their greatest." FIFA President Gianni Infantino said, “One of the greatest players of his generation, Paco leaves behind a lifetime of memories for all fans of football, but especially those of Spain and Real Madrid.”

Legacy "Regarded as one of the greatest Spanish players of all time and one of the greatest ever players in his position, Gento was an extremely fast left winger, which made him an effective assist provider with high accuracy in his crosses."

Career statistics

Club

International

Scores and results list Spain's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gento goal.

Honours Gento holding the 1966 European Cup trophy, with Santiago Bernabéu to his right. Real Madrid's tribute to Gento following his death, with a giant No. 11 jersey and the trophies he won with the club displayed on the pitch at the Bernabéu. Real Madrid La Liga: 1953–54, 1954–55, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69 Copa del Generalísimo: 1961–62, 1969–70 European Cup: 1955–56, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1965–66 Latin Cup: 1955, 1957 Intercontinental Cup: 1960

Non-official Small Club World Cup: 1956

Individual World XI: 1960, 1961, 1962 Golden Foot Legends Award: 2004 Marca Legend Award: 2007 World Soccer: The 100 Greatest Footballers of All Time IFFHS Legends

Records Most La Liga titles: 12 Most European Cup titles: 6 (tied with Dani Carvajal, Toni Kroos, Luka Modrić and Nacho) Most European Cup final appearances: 8 (tied with Paolo Maldini)