Mbappé, Benzema, Zidane: Real Madrid's French touch
Kylian Mbappé, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga, and Ferland Mendy are perpetuating a tradition of French players playing at Real Madrid.
Benzema: the record breaker
When it comes to French legends playing for Los Blancos, they don't come any bigger than Karim Benzema. The Lyon youth product joined Real Madrid all the way back in 2009 for a €35m fee; in hindsight, it is a bargain price for a prolific goalscorer, who won it all at the Bernabeu.
The centre-forward was like le bon vin, only getting better with age. He had constructed an incredible partnership with Cristiano Ronaldo, which had the rest of Europe at its knees. However, when the Portuguese forward departed, Benzema only got better, assuming the mantle of the main goal-scorer and firing them all the way to further European glory in 2021/22. That was the last of his five UCL titles, whilst the Ballon d'Or winner also won La Liga on four occasions.
He left to join Al-Ittihad in 2023. Benzema did so, having cemented his legacy as perhaps the best French player to ever pull on the Real Madrid shirt. He made an incredible 648 appearances for Los Blancos, more than any other Frenchman, netting 354 goals, once again, more than any other Frenchman.
Zidane: The maverick
Next on that list of highest French goalscorers is Zinédine Zidane on 49. However, his impact isn't entirely measured in goals. The former Bordeaux midfielder captured the imagination for club and country across his career. Following his €77m move from Juventus in 2001, he went on to make 227 appearances in a five-year period before retiring in 2006.
One of France's all-time greats, he also made his mark as a manager across two successful spells at the Bernabeu. He won the Champions League three times as manager of Los Blancos. Not only that, he did so in consecutive years, becoming the first manager to ever pull off the feat. He left Real Madrid for a second time in 2021 and has not managed since. But as a player and later as manager, he could hardly have given any more to the Spanish giants.
Raphael Varane: The mainstay
Whilst Raphael Varane, victim of a series of injuries towards the end of his career, didn't have the longevity that he would have hoped for, he proved the anchor for Real Madrid over the space of a decade, during which he won four UCL titles.
He made the step to the Bernabeu at an early age, having come through the academy at Lens and would prove to be displaceable in Real Madrid's back-line until leaving in 2021 to join Manchester United.
The midfield maestros
Plenty of other French players have put on the Real Madrid jersey in recent times, including Claude Makélélé and Lassine Diarra, who, between them, made over 250 appearances for the La Liga club in the 2000s and early 2010s. Raymond Kopa, the Ballon d'Or winner in 1958, also made over 100 appearances for the club, netting 30 goals.
The likes of Tchouaméni, Camavinga and Mendy are continuing the legacy, with all having already won the Champions League with the club. Whilst Mbappé's first year may have ended without any major trophies, he is already making his mark, too. With 48 goals to his name in just 63 games, he is already just one goal away from Zidane's goal tally. Against Marseille at the Bernabeu on Tuesday, he will be looking to surpass the mighty Zizou.
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