They say that every decade has its defining superstar. For the 60's, it was Pele. For the 80's, it was Maradona. These two are regarded as two of the men who have a legitimate say in being the greatest ever man to kick a football. But there is one man people often forget. A man who seems like a forgotten legend. A myth. That man is Alfredo Di Stefano, La Saeta Rubia ("The Blond Arrow").

I'd like to get all of you reading this Player Profile familiar with the man who made history. A man, without whom, Real Madrid would not be the club it is today. Without whom Real Madrid would not be the "Greatest Club of the 20th century". The man who dominated the 1950's, and terrorized defenses with his play. I hope you enjoy this Player Profile, and I hope you recognize that Alfredo Di Stefano has just as much claim on being the greatest ever footballer.

Alfredo Stefano Di Stefano Laulhe
(1926-2014)

Nicknames:

Don Alfredo
La Saeta Rubia (The Blond Arrow)
The Godfather of Real Madrid

Born in Buenos Aires, Alfredo was the son of Alfredo Di Stefano, and Italian-Argentine (Fun fact: Lionel Messi's family is also Italian-Argentine) and Eulalhia Laulhe Gilmont, an Argentine with French and Irish blood within her.

Club Career

At age 16, in 1945, Alfredo Di Stefano began his club career at River Plate. He changed the style of South American football completely, as River Plate’s style used to focus on technique and dribbling, while Di Stefano brought in the factor of speed and quick moves. Forming a formidable offensive line with a legendary River Plate squad called “La Maquina” (The Machine), Di Stefano dominated Argentinian football for years along with fellow Argentine legend Jose Manuel Moreno. However, a problem with Argentine clubs lacking the funds to pay the players resulted in Di Stefano, as well as many other South American players, to move to Colombia in 1949, and play for Millonarios.

Again, Di Stefano became the focal point of a legendary Millonarios team, and he fired in 267 goals in 292 games from age 20-24 to win 4 league titles in 5 years. However, he soon quit football in search for another career, and returned to his home in Buenos Aires. The Barracas district in Buenos Aires is where Di Stefano lived, and it was a port that connected Europe and South America. That was when football directors from Barcelona came to speak to Alfredo.

This later became known as the “Di Stefano affair”, as the most significant transfer in the history of football took place. Barcelona came to speak with River Plate, and signed a contract with Di Stefano. However, the contract was not recognized by the Spanish FA because Millonarios still held the rights to Alfredo. Pressure from General Francisco Franco’s regime resulted in Real Madrid’s legendary president Santiago Bernabeu to make a bid for Di Stefano to Millonarios. This time, the Spanish FA did recognize the deal, and let Di Stefano make his way to Spain. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Alfredo Di Stefano joined Real Madrid in 1953, and led Real Madrid to their first La Liga title in 21 years. Di Stefano scored his first goal for Real Madrid from outside the box against Barcelona, and along with Francisco Gento, Raymond Kopa, and Ferenc Puskas, Alfredo formed what is known as one of the greatest club sides in the history of the game. Don Alfredo won 8 La Liga titles with Real Madrid, and won the first 5 European Cups in a row, and scored in every single European Cup final from 1956 – 1960.

Don Alfredo became the highest ever scorer for Real Madrid with 305 goals, and was the highest scorer in the European Cup with 49 goals for many decades, until Raul broke it. He won the Pichichi award 5 times in his first 6 years at Real, and won the Ballon d’Or in 1957 and 1959. Di Stefano left Real for Espanyol in 1964, after 11 years at the club, and played his final match in a 3-1 loss to Internazionale in the European Cup final. After 2 years at Espanyol, Alfredo retired from football at the age of 40.

International Career

Alfredo made his debut in a competitive international tournament in the Copa America in 1947, and scored 6 goals in 6 games to help Argentina win the competition. But that would be his last game in an Argentine shirt, as disputes in the Argentine Football Federation led Di Stefano to opt for Colombia instead, but his luck ith Colombia fared no better. Finally, he tried one last time with Spain, but for the only World Cup they made it to (1962), he was injured, and didn’t get to play a single match. Di Stefano’s international career was unfortunate, and incomparable to his club success.

Achievements

Highest scoring midfielder in football history
Most goals in European Cup final – 7
One of two players to ever score a hat-trick in the European Cup final (other being Ferenc Puskas in the same
match)
Most hat-tricks in La Liga - 22
Highest goalscorer in European Cup (1956 – 2005)
Highest goalscorer in Real Madrid history (195?-2008)
Pichichi Award – 1954, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959
Ballon d’Or – 1957, 1959
Argentine League top scorer – 1947
Colombian League top scorer – 1951, 1952
FIFA 100
Honorary President of Real Madrid

Honors

Argentina
Copa America – 1947

River Plate
Primera Division – 1945, 1947

Millonarios
Colombian League – 1949, 1951, 1952, 1953
Copa Colombia – 1953

Real Madrid
La Liga – 1954, 1955, 1957, 1958, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964
Copa del Rey – 1962
European Cup – 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960
Intercontinental Cup – 1960

Total Trophies: 23

Statistics

Huracan – 10 goals, 25 games

River Plate – 53 goals, 72 games

Millonarios – 267 goals, 292 games

Real Madrid – 305 goals, 396 games

Espanyol – 14 goals, 60 games

Spain – 23 goals, 31 games

Argentina – 6 goals, 6 games

Colombia - ? goals, ? games

Total - ~ 672 goals, ~ 882 games

Style of Play

Di Stefano is widely credited for changing the style of football in all of history, as I had briefly mentioned above (him changing South American football to a style bent on speed and quick moves over touch and technique).

Di Stefano is also credited for inventing and defining the position “box-to-box midfielder”. He was notable for picking up the ball from the goal keeper, running past a few players, laying off passes, and being on the end of the cross to score the goal. He certainly was well ahead of his time, and no greater box-to-box midfielder has been seen since.

Strengths/Weaknesses & Highlights of Career

Di Stefano is widely called the “most complete footballer ever” because of the simple fact that he did not have a weakness. His strength was in every category, his weakness in none.

The highlight of his career has to be the 7-3 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the European Cup final in 1960. Di Stefano scored 3 goals, Ferenc Puskas scored 4, and the game went down in history as the greatest ever match in European Cup history. The biggest disappointment in his career was not being able to play in the 1962 World Cup due to injury, as it was the only World Cup his team ever qualified to.

Legacy

As per Billy Haisley, “Before there was Total Football, there was Alfredo Di Stéfano running up and down the pitch, commanding his entire team from any spot on the entire field back when most were taught to stick to their positions. Before there was the modern focus on first touch and close control, there was Alfredo Di Stéfano cushioning in 50-yard long balls and dribbling amid a fog of defenders, when most were content only to sprint in he clearings. He was a player well ahead of his time, and it was what made him the iconic player of his day, and one of the greatest to step foot on a pitch”. Rest in peace Don Alfredo, for Real Madrid would never be the superstar club it is today without you.

Quotes

Eusebio: "Di Stefano, my hero. For me, he was the most complete footballer in history"

Francisco Gento: "Alfredo was just a born winner. The greatest in the world, without a doubt. For us, he was like a God. A sporting God."

Bobby Charlton: "Pele is the most naturally gifted. Maradona could claim to be the best player that the world has ever seen. But whenever I'm asked, I always say, if I had to be playing as another player in another career, it would be Alfredo Di Stefano. He was just the most sensational player, and character, and personality, and leader."

Sandro Mazzola: "I saw this figure, dressed in all white. For me, he was football's God. Someone incredible."

Bobby Charlton: “His period with Real Madrid is what gave Real Madrid the mystique that they have now”

Francisco Gento: “He represents the beginning of everything. The old Madrid team was nothing more than an average side, but when he arrived, we started to win everything. That’s how we became famous all over the world. Real Madrid, a winning team.

Jose Santamaria: "He could defend, he could attack, he could run, he could head the ball, and used both right and left feet. He played all over the pitch. He was the most complete player ever, something I have never seen anywhere else. And I've seen a lot of players"

Bobby Charlton: "I remember watching him from up in the terraces one day, and I was looking down and I thought, 'Who is that? Who is that man? He's got the ball all the time. He takes it from the goalkeeper, the full backs, the midfielders, and everything is happening around him"

Alfredo Di Stefano: "I never considered myself a star. I always thought of myself as a football player, a professional. I just worked hard, had a certain will to win, and team spirit. That's what my game was all about."

References

http://screamer.deadspin.com/alfredo-di-stefano-could-wallop-with-the-best-of-em-1601420490/+billyhaisley

http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/news/newsid=2401363/

The video below is also a part of my references, and is something for all to enjoy.

Di Stefano with Real Madrid.

Di Stefano with Jose Manuel Moreno, two of Argentina's greatest ever players.

From left to right, the original Los Galacticos, Raymond Copa, Rial, Alfredo Di Stefano, Ferenc Puskas, and Francisco Gento. Arguably the greatest offensive line in history.

Great profile and summary!!! Well done mate.

I never knew he played for Colombia, and even because of the regulation in Argentina of some sort??? Too bad he miss the world cup for Spain.

Beside, I find it quite surprising that he does NOT have a single weakness, I wasn't follow him at his time, but I dont believe in a player without weakness.

Aside from that, what a legend. Respect! I have learned something new today, too.

Good work Dynast, a legend indeed in my top 10 Football greatest.

For the Barça move, its not exactly what happened...
I will add one paragraph from fcbarecelona.com

'' In 1953, FC Barcelona signed Di Stéfano after reaching an agreement with River Plate, the club that owned the rights to the player. At the same time, Real Madrid carried out negotiations with Millonarios, the team that Di Stéfano was playing for then. A strange federative manoeuvre with Francoist backing stipulated that Di Stéfano should play alternate seasons with each club. Barça went against the verdict and relinquished the player. Kubala’s Barça and Di Stéfano’s Madrid competed for many years for the domination of national football.''

Kubala was a Barça legend and Puskas teammate in the famous Hungarian national team of that time.

From a Barça view, we got robbed the player by Franco and that was the start of the very fierce rivalry between the 2 Clubs we actually know....

Direct transfers between the 2 Clubs have become quite impossible to do... ( Figo gate )

This controversial moment had a big impact in History and i know this special affair is more a big deal at Barcelona than at Madrid, everyone in Cataluna remember this.

I want to mention that the player has no responsibility in the affair, he is respected at Barcelona as one of the best, different case than Figo.

@Tuan

"Beside, I find it quite surprising that he does NOT have a single weakness"

That's why he is regarded as the only complete player in history. ;)

Puskas was useless in the air, Pele didn't have much strength, Maradona was hopelessly one-footed, but Di Stefano had none of those weaknesses.

Good job on this, Dyn! I'll post mine as soon as I'm done with the finishing touches.

I just have a small feeling my player profile will not be as good as yours Dynast, but good job.

Also, do you copy and paste from some kind of word processor or do you just do your while post on the footyroom post maker

@SoccerBoss

I wrote it out in Microsoft Word, then edited the format in FootyRoom. :)

@Vendetta

Thanks mate! Hope to see yours soon. :D

Good Job mate very informative and well compiled

@Awais

Thank you very much. :)