The first ‘El Clasico‘ of the season is a good opportunity to see who the greatest scorers are over the years in the league clashes between Barcelona and Real Madrid. Spoiler: Lionel Messi is one of them, Cristiano Ronaldo is not.
5. Francisco Gento – 10 goals
We begin our top 5 with Getno, who played as what was known back then as an outside left. He began his pro career playing for Racing Santander, but soon joined Real Madrid, where he played from 1955 until 1971, winning six European Cups (and appeared in 8 finals) along with 12 La Liga championships. Gento scored 128 goals for Real Madrid in league play, and also helped Spain win the 1964 Euro. He scored his last Clasico goal in 1969, a 3-3 draw at the Bernabeu.
4. Raul – 11 goals
Despite not playing for Real Madrid since 2010, Raul is still the greatest modern-times scorer for Real Madrid in league matches against Barcelona. The Madrid-born player, who spent some time playing for Atletico before they shut down their youth academy, helped bring back Real Madrid to European glory during his 16 years at the club, helping win 3 Champions League titles as well as 6 La Liga championships. His last goal against Barcelona in the league came in Real Madrid’s famous 4-1 win in 2008, which is remembered as the Pasillo Clasico, en route to a 2nd straight title. Raul scored 228 league goals in 550 matches for Real Madrid.
3. César – 12 goals
Born in Leon (1920), Cesar is one of two Barcelona players on the list, and famous for his ability to score from the corner spot. He played for Barcelona from 1939 through 1955, before the big, dominant era of Real Madrid began. He helped Barcelona to 5 championships, the last of which in 1953. The forward, who helped Spain to a semifinal in the 1950 World Cup, scored his last El Clasico goal in February 1954, when Barcelona thrashed Real Madrid 5-1. He scored 192 goals in 287 league matches for Barcelona.
2. Alfredo di Stefano – 14 goals
Who knows where both clubs would be right now had Di Stefano played for Barcelona and not Real Madrid. But things transpired as they did, and Di Stefano helped launch the most dominant era of one club in European football, helping Real Madrid win 5 European Cups and 8 La Liga championships, while scoring 216 goals in 282 matches. On December 1963, he added a goal to Ferenc Puskas’ hat trick to help Real Madrid beat Barcelona 4-0, his last El Clasico league goal.
1. Lionel Messi – 16 goals
After his famous hat trick in Barcelona 4-3 win at the Santiago Bernabeu, tied Di Stefano for 14 goals in the Clasico. It took him more than 3 years to score his next Clasico goal, part of a brace in a 3-2 win over Real Madrid in the Spanish capital last season, which didn’t stop Real from winning the league title. Messi hasn’t scored against Real Madrid at home in the league since a 2-2 draw in October 2012. As for his numbers, he scored 363 goals in 398 matches for Barcelona, winning 8 league championships and 4 Champions League trophies.