In the summer of 2000, Real Madrid shocked Spanish football by luring Barcelona’s star player and club captain Luis Figo across enemy lines.
Presidential candidate Florentino Perez pledged to sign the Portugal international if he won the election to replace Lorenzo Sans as the new man in charge at Madrid.
Perez delivered on his promise.
It seemed improbable that someone adored by Barca fans – who enjoyed a trophy-packed five years at Camp Nou – could move to arch-rivals. But at the end of July 2000, the impossible became a reality.
Figo was the first player of Perez’s Galactico project as he joined Los Blancos for a then-world-record fee.
His return to Catalonia was met with expected anger by Barca fans. It was a bitter pill to swallow witnessing first-hand their once-adored winger donning the white Madrid strip in El Clasico.
Barcelona legend Johan Cruyff said after the match in October 2000: “The Camp Nou gobbled up Figo and all of Real Madrid.”
Despite his unwelcoming first return to his old stomping ground, Figo thrived wearing the famous No.10 jersey once worn by the legendary Alfredo Di Stefano. He was crowned as the 2000 Ballon d’Or winner and won multiple team honours – including the Champions League in 2002.
Figo’s five years in the Spanish capital cemented his legacy as one of the greatest players of his generation. But how did Madrid’s other signings in the summer of 2000 fare?
Flavio Conceicao
Highly-rated Brazilian midfielder Flavio Conceicao joined Los Blancos for a reported €26million from Deportivo. Despite much excitement about his arrival from the fellow Spanish outfit, Conceicao is now a forgotten man in the annals of history for many Madrid supporters.
He appeared just 45 times under Vincente del Bosque before he was loaned to German giants Borussia Dortmund.
Conceicao struggled to ever rediscover the levels of performance that saw him earn a switch to the Bernabeu. Injuries took their toll and he eventually retired at 32 after spells with Galatasaray and Panathinaikos.
READ: 17 transfers that shook football: Figo, Pele, Shearer, Eto’o & more
Claude Makelele
The backbone of a Madrid side that won seven trophies in his three years in Spain.
While Florentino Perez is credited as the man who masterminded Luis Figo’s welcome shock arrival at the club, in contrast, his assessment of the unassuming French midfielder following his departure to Chelsea couldn’t have been further from the truth.
He claimed…
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