Brits at the Bernabeu: Bale joins Beckham, Owen, Cunningham, McManaman (and flop Woodgate) in wearing the white of Madrid

Gareth Bale becomes only the sixth British player to represent Real Madrid after joining the Spanish giants from Tottenham. 

The Wales superstar follows in the footsteps of Laurie Cunningham, Steve McManaman, David Beckham, Michael Owen and Jonathan Woodgate, all of who enjoyed varying success at the Bernabeu.

 

Fee: £950,000 from West Bromwich Albion.
Appearances: 44
Goals: 13
Honours: La Liga 1979-80, Copa del Rey 1980 and 1981.  

Laurie Cunningham (1979-1984)

A trailblazer in breaking down race barriers and he is also believed to have been the only Real player to leave the Nou Camp pitch to a standing ovation. 

Cunningham scored twice on his debut for Real and went on to win the double, while being largely overlooked for England. He was part of the side that lost the 1981 European Cup final against Liverpool. Compared by Vicente del Bosque to Cristiano Ronaldo.   

Trailblazer: Laurie Cunningham netted twice on his debut for Real Madrid but was largely overlooked by England

Fee: Free from Liverpool.
Appearances: 152.
Goals: 14
Honours: La Liga 2000-01 and 2002-03, Champions League 2000 and 2002, UEFA Supercup 2002, Spanish Supercup 2001 and 2003, Intercontinental Cup 2002.  

Steve McManaman (1999-2003)

A hero at the Bernabeu and, perhaps surprisingly, the most successful British export. 

He was man of the match in their 2000 Champions League final win over Valencia – he also scored - and Del Bosque, his manager at the time, once said that it was McManaman's personality that 'kept the whole squad united'. His golf buddies were Luis Figo and Ronaldo.     

All white on the night: Steve McManaman made over 150 appearances for Real Madrid

Fee: £24.5m from Manchester United.
Appearances: 155 appearances.
Goals: 20
Honours: La Liga 2006-07, Spanish Supercup 2003 

David Beckham (2003-2007)

Offloaded by Sir Alex Ferguson, Beckham was the ultimate Galactico. In footballing terms, it was not an especially glorious period in either Beckham's or Real's history, but the club did see a massive hike in merchandise sales, 

Forbes reporting that they brought in upwards of $600 million during Beckham's four years at the club. Despite a lack of silverware, the fans genuinely took to Beckham.   

Come in No 23: David Beckham signed for Real Madrid in the summer of 2003 and boosted shirt sales (below)

Fee: £8m from Liverpool.
Appearances: 45.
Goals: 16
Honours: None.  

Michael Owen (2004-05)

Owen described it recently as the hardest year of his life and alluded to bouts of depression. It was delivered as a warning to Gareth Bale. On the pitch, he retained a respectable goal ratio, but he won nothing, was often overlooked in favour of Ronaldo – the real one – and then Robinho. 

When Newcastle offered to pay more than double what Real had bought him for, the Spaniards did not hesitate.     

On target: Michael Owen scored 16 times in 45 appearances for Real Madrid

Fee: £13.4m from Newcastle.
Appearances: 14.
Goal: 1
Honours: None.  

Jonathan Woodgate: (2004-07)

It started pretty badly and didn't improve much. He scored an own goal and was sent off on his debut and the rest of the time was largely hindered by injuries. In July 2007, Woodgate was voted the worst signing of the 21st century by users of the website of Spain's leading sports daily, Marca.   

Flop: Woodgate endured an unsuccessful spell at Madrid which was plagued by injuries and poor form