Santillana (footballer)


Carlos Alonso González, known as Santillana, is a Spanish former footballer who played as a striker.
Best known for his Real Madrid spell, which consisted of 17 La Liga seasons and 643 competitive matches, he was known for his stellar heading ability despite not reaching 1.80m, courtesy of his elevation, and was widely regarded as one of the best strikers in the history of Spanish football.
The recipient of more than 50 caps for Spain, Santillana represented the nation in two World Cups and as many European Championships.

Club career

Born in Santillana del Mar, Cantabria, Santillana started playing professionally with local Racing de Santander, moving to Real Madrid and La Liga in 1971 alongside teammate Francisco Aguilar, aged just 19, and proceeding to score ten goals in 34 games in his debut season as the team were crowned league champions.
In total, Santillana won nine league trophies, adding four Copa del Rey trophies and back-to-back UEFA Cups and scoring in both of the latter competition's finals. He played 778 first-team matches – a record which stood until Manolo Sanchís surpassed him during the 1997–98 campaign – in which he netted 352 goals; the eighth-highest top scorer of all-time in the Spanish first division, with 186 goals in 461 appearances, he never won the Pichichi Trophy, however.
After just 12 league appearances in 1987–88, in which he scored four times, Santillana retired from football aged almost 36, finding the net in a 2–1 home win against Real Valladolid. Madrid conquered three titles in a row in his final three seasons.

International career

Santillana played 56 times and scored 15 goals for the Spanish national team, his debut being on 17 April 1975 in a 1–1 draw to Romania for the UEFA Euro 1976 qualifiers held in Madrid. He represented his country in the 1978 and 1982 FIFA World Cups, as well as three European Championships: 1976, reaching the quarter-finals, 1980, failing to advance to the second round, and 1984 which ended with a runner-up finish to hosts France, with the player coming close to scoring the opener on a header saved just off the line by Luis Fernández, of Spanish origin.
On 21 December 1983, during a European Championship qualifying match against Malta that had to be won by 11 goals in order to qualify, Santillana scored a hat-trick in the first half and added a fourth in the second period, as the national side qualified at the expense of the Netherlands – incidentally, his former understudy at Real Madrid, Hipólito Rincón, also netted four times in a 12–1 victory.

Career statistics

Club

International goals

#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.16 November 197523 August, Bucharest, Romania0–22–2Euro 1976 qualifying
2.24 April 1976Vicente Calderón, Madrid, Spain1–01–1Euro 1976 qualifying
3.4 October 1978Maksimir, Zagreb, Yugoslavia0–21–2Euro 1980 qualifying
4.13 December 1978El Helmántico, Salamanca, Spain3–05–0Euro 1980 qualifying
5.13 December 1978El Helmántico, Salamanca, Spain5–05–0Euro 1980 qualifying
6.9 December 1979Tsirion, Limassol, Cyprus0–21–3Euro 1980 qualifying
7.27 April 1983La Romareda, Zaragoza, Spain1–02–0Euro 1984 qualifying
8.16 November 1983De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands1–12–1Euro 1984 qualifying
9.21 December 1983Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain1–012–1Euro 1984 qualifying
10.21 December 1983Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain2–112–1Euro 1984 qualifying
11.21 December 1983Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain3–112–1Euro 1984 qualifying
12.21 December 1983Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain9–112–1Euro 1984 qualifying
13.11 April 1984Luis Casanova, Valencia, Spain1–12–1Friendly
14.26 May 1984Charmilles, Geneva, Switzerland0–10–4Friendly
15.17 June 1984Vélodrome, Marseille, France1–11–1UEFA Euro 1984

Honours

Club

Real Madrid
Spain