Francisco "Paco" Gento López (born October 21, 1933 in Guarnizo, Cantabria) was a Spanish football player.

He débuted in the Primera División with Racing Santander in the 1952-53 season. In the following year, he signed for Real Madrid and became a legendary player of that club, in the number 11 shirt.

The Galerna del Cantábrico (The Storm of the Cantábrico), as he was known, played outside left and was noted not only for being gifted with immense speed, but also for his great skills with the ball and his relatively high scoring capabilities given his position. He captained a young side, known in Spain as Ye-yé, because of the popularity of The Beatles at that time.

Among other honours, he won the European Cup a record 6 times with Real Madrid, scoring 30 goals in 89 European Cup career matches. He also played for Spain from 1955 to 1969, winning 43 caps and scoring 5 times.

After he retired from football in 1971, he decided to take up coaching. He took charge of various lower-league teams, such as Castilla, Castellón, Palencia, and Granada. In the end, he accepted a post working as an ambassador for Real Madrid throughout Europe.

Career Accomplishments

• Won six European Cups with Real Madrid (1956-60, 1965-66), competing in eight finals.
• Won the Intercontinental Cup in 1960.
• Won the league twelve times with Real Madrid.
• Twice won the Copa del Rey with Real Madrid.

External links

• Francisco Gento's International Appearances and Goals
  
• Francisco Gento's Goals in European Cups

1933 births | Living people | La Liga footballers | Real Madrid footballers | Spanish footballers | Spanish international footballers

Paco Gento | Francisco Gento | Francisco Gento | Francisco Gento | Francisco Gento | פרנסיסקו חנטו | Francisco Gento | Francisco Gento