1. Francisco "Paco" Gento Lopez was a Spanish footballer who played as an outside left.
18 Facts About Paco Gento
1. 2.
Paco Gento was voted by IFFHS as the greatest Spanish footballer and 30th greatest world footballer of the 20th century.
3.
Paco Gento is widely regarded as one of the greatest wingers in the history of the sport.
4.
Paco Gento began his career at Racing Santander in 1952 and moved to Real Madrid the following season.
5.
Paco Gento appeared in a joint record eight European Cup finals, winning a joint record six, as well as winning a record 12 La Liga titles.
6.
Paco Gento 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.
7.
Paco Gento did not score in his first season and was under pressure from club president Santiago Bernabeu.
8.
Paco Gento contributed with 31 goals in 88 European Cup career matches.
9.
Domestically, Paco Gento collected 12 La Liga titles during his time with Madrid.
10.
Paco Gento scored 128 times in 428 league appearances for the club, a strong return for a winger, especially as he was often providing goals for teammates Di Stefano and Puskas.
11.
Paco Gento won 23 trophies for the club, which remained an outright record until equalled by Marcelo days before Gento's death.
12.
Paco Gento later took up a role as an ambassador for Real Madrid throughout Europe, alongside Di Stefano.
13.
Paco Gento played for the Spain national team from 1955 to 1969, winning 43 caps and scoring five times.
14.
Paco Gento was initially known as "La tercera G" for succeeding Agustin Gainza and Guillermo Gorostiza in his position.
15.
In 1964 European Nations' Cup qualification, Paco Gento was included alongside Collar under new manager Jose 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.
16.
Paco Gento ended short of the record of 46 caps by Ricardo Zamora.
17.
Grand-nephew Marcos Llorente, son of Paco Gento Llorente, is a footballer.
18.
Paco Gento died in his sleep on 18 January 2022, at the age of 88.