12 February 2003 - Raúl Takes Two To Become Number One

On 12 February 2003, Raúl González scored two goals in a 3-1 win over Germany to become Spain's all-time top scorer.

Raúl, who played 16 seasons at Real Madrid before moving to Schalke in 2010, made his first full international appearance in 1996. He scored only five times in his first three years, but hit his stride in 1999 with ten goals--the most ever scored for Spain by one player in a single year. He never replicated that performance, but continued to be a reliable striker and took over as captain in 2002.

The friendly with Germany came in the midst of Spain's qualification campaign for Euro 2004. Played in Mallorca, Raúl scored the opening goal in the 30th minute. It was the 30th of his career, beating the former record of 29 held jointly with his Real Madrid teammate Fernando Hierro. Germany's Fredi Bobic equalized for the visitors eight minutes later, but Raúl restored the lead in with a 77th-minute penalty kick. Guti added a third for the hosts to end the day at 3-1.

Raúl scored a total of 44 goals for Spain before his retirement from international play in 2006. While still a record, it is shared with Barcelona forward David Villa who looks likely to surpass it this year.

18 March 1998 - Bayer Gets A Real Headache

On 18 March 1998, Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen played the second leg of their Champions League Quarterfinal match-up. Although the Germans had managed a 1-1 draw in the first leg, played in Germany on 4 March, the Spanish giants proved too strong at home, sweeping Bayer aside 3-0 on their way to the club's seventh European Cup/Champions League title.

Real dominated the match from the start, but were kept out of the goal in the first half by Bayer keeper Dirk Heinen (pictured). He made a handful of brilliant saves to keep the match scoreless, including one from a long-range shot taken from just inside the midfield stripe with Heinen just managing to tip the ball over the bar.

Early in the second half Real's pressure paid off with two goals in rapid succession, both coming from set pieces (50', Karembeu and 57', Morientes). With advancement secure, Real capped their victory with a 90th-minute penalty kick to end the match 3-0 for the home side. The scoreline was an accurate reflection of Real's dominance - only Heinen's outstanding play prevented the margin from being substantially larger.

Real went on to claim the trophy with a 1-0 win over Juventus in the Final. Real and Bayer met again in the 2002 Final, played in Glasgow's Hampden Park, with Real once more finishing on top, 2-1.