DID YOU KNOW THE ONLY PLAYER TO HAVE EVER WON THE SPANISH LA LIGA TITLES FIVE TIMES IN A ROW PLAYING FOR TWO DIFFERENT CLUBS?

Danish football legend Michael Laudrup is one of the few illustrious players to have played for the El-Clásico rivals of FC Barcelona and Real Madrid intermitently from 1989/1990 season to the 1995/1996 season. Laudrup is the only player ever to win the Spanish La Liga five times in a row playing for two different clubs in the 1990/1991, 1991/1992, 1992/1993, 1993/1994 for FC Barcelona and in 1994/1995 season for Real Madrid.

He appeared for Real Madrid in a 5-0 win over FC Barcelona and also played for FC Barcelona when they beat Real Madrid 5-0 while he was playing at Camp Nou. He is now the manager of Swansea City in the English Premier League (EPL) replacing Northern Irishman Brendan Rodgers who left for Liverpool FC.

DO YOU KNOW THE PLAYER THAT LOST THE LAST MINUTE PENALTY THAT CAUSED DEPORTIVO LA CORONA THE 1993/1994 SEASON SPANISH PRIMERA LIGA TITLE?

Djukic stepping up to take the PK

Serbian Miroslav Đjukić made an odd history for Spanish Primera Liga high flying side Deportivo La Coruña in the 1993/1994 season. 

On May 14, 1994, in the league's last round, at home at the Estadio Riazor against Valencia CF, Đjukić missed a penalty kick in the game's last minute with a easy save from Jose Gonzalez (eventual 0–0 draw), as habitual taker Donato had already been replaced and second option Bebeto refused the responsibility. 

As a result, FC Barcelona were crowned champions instead, and the elegant defender left Deportivo La Coruña at the end of 1996/1997 season at the age of 31, as his contract was not renewed.

DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG DEPORTIVO LA CORONA SPENT IN THE SPANISH PRIMERA LIGA BEFORE IT GOT RELEGATED IN THE 2010/2011 SEASON?

From the 1991/1992 season, Deportivo La Coruña spent 20 consecutive seasons in the Spanish Primera Liga before it got relegated to the Spanish Segunda Liga in the 2010/2011 season finishing 18th. 

The club won their only Spanish Primera Liga title in the 1999/2000 season with Javier Irureta in charge. La Coruña also became the smallest Spanish city (population roughly 200.000 habitants), to have ever won the Primera Liga championship.

DO YOU KNOW THE SCORER OF REAL MADRID'S WINNING GOAL IN THE 1997/1998 UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEASON?

 Predrag Mijatovic

Montenegrian Predrag Mijatović scored Real Madrid's winning and only goal against Juventus in the final of the 1997/1998 UEFA Champions League season at the Amsterdam ArenA which was incidentally his first goal for that season under German coach Jupp Heynckes. 

He was signed from Valencia CF in the summer of 1996 after he scored 28 goals in 40 Spanish Primera Liga matches to lead them to second position which got him got him the Spanish Footballer of the Year honours in the 1995/1996 season.

DO YOU KNOW THE ALL TIME TOP SCORER IN THE SPANISH PRIMERA LIGA?

Telmo Zarra scoring

Telmo Zarraonandia Montoya popularly known as Telmo Zarra who played mostly for Athletic Bilboa from 1940-1955 is the all time highest goalscorer in the Spanish Primera Liga with a total of 251 career goals. He also has the honour to have won the Pichichi Trophy a record six times. Despite this excellent records, he only had 20 caps for Spain. Even so, he still managed to score 20 goals, including 4 in one historic match when Spain beat Switzerland 6–3 on February 18, 1951.

DID YOU KNOW THE SECOND GOALKEEPER TO WIN THE AFRICAN FOOTBALLER OF THE YEAR AWARD?

Badou Ezzaki (nicknamed "Zaki") of Morocco was named by France Football magazine as African Footballer of the Year for 1986 while he was playing for RCD Mallorca in the Spanish Primera Liga. Zaki is the second goalkeeper to win the award after Thomas Nkono of Cameroon won it twice in 1979 while playing with Canon Yaounde and in 1982 for RCD Espanyol in Spain.

DO YOU KNOW THE PLAYER DIEGO FORLAN PIPPED TO WIN THE TWO PICHICHI TROPHY AWARDS FOR THE TOP SCORER WHILE HE WAS IN THE SPANISH PRIMERA LIGA?

Diego Forlan is a two-time winner of the Pichichi Trophy for the top-scorer in the Spanish Primera Liga with two different clubsides. His first Pichichi Trophy was with Villarreal CF 2004–05 season when he scored 25 goals in 38 appearances (averaging a goal every 1.5 games) and helped Villarreal CF to their first ever UEFA Champions League spot. He also jointly won the European Soccer Magazine (ESM) Golden Boot award with Thierry Henry (then of Arsenal FC). Forlan's second Pichichi Trophy came in the 2008-2009 season while at Atletico Madrid and he notched up an impressive 32 goals in 33 matches (essentially a goal per game). Interestingly on both occasion, he came from behind to pip Samuel Eto'o then with FC Barcelona to the prize.

DO YOU KNOW WHO SCORED THE FASTEST HAT-TRICK IN THE SPANISH PRIMERA LIGA?

David Villa

Long before David Villa usurped Raul Gonzalez and became the all-time leading goalscorer for the La Furia Roja (Spanish national team), he had the honour of scoring the quickest hat-trick in the Spanish Primera Liga for Valencia CF. 

With the match at Estadio San Mames against Athletic Bilboa tied at 0-0 and with only 10 minutes left on the clock, Villa broke Bilbao hearts when he scored three goals in the space of five minutes.

 

WHICH ENGLISH FOOTBALLER GOT A TORRID DEBUT FOR REAL MADRID BY SCORING AN OWN-GOAL AND RECEIVING A RED CARD?

Injury prone Jonathan Woodgate's debut for Spanish giants, Real Madrid C.F. on September 22, 2005 was torrid, 516 days after his unveiling as a £13.4 million signing from English side Newcastle United. He scored an own goal and was then sent off in just over an hour of play against Athletic Bilboa in a Spanish Primera Liga match at the Santiago Bernabeu. 

DID JOHAN CRUYFF LOSE ANY SPANISH PRIMERA LIGA MATCH IN HIS FIRST SEASON WITH FC BARCELONA?



Johan Cruyff

 When Johan Cruyff of The Netherlands landed in F.C. Barcelona, his new team were one place from bottom of the Spanish Primera Liga and from the day of his debut against Granada on October 28, 1973 (4-0 with two goals from the Dutchman), FC Barcelona did not lose another match in the entire season and were proclaimed La Liga champions.

DID YOU KNOW WHO STRUCK A FREEKICK GOAL THAT HIT THE WOODWORK THRICE?

Marcos Assunção, the Brazilian freekick bomber who was playing for Spanish side Real Betis Balompie hit a hat-trick of sort on his debut as a Verdiblanco. Against Deportivo La Corona in a Spanish Primera Liga at the Estadio Riazor in August 2002, he scored a spectacular 40-yard freekick with his weaker left foot which proceeded to strike the woodwork in no less than three occasions, The match ended 4-2 in favour of the Andalusians.

DID YOU KNOW WHEN LIONEL MESSI MADE HIS DEBUT AND SCORED HIS FIRST GOAL FOR F.C. BARCELONA?

The great Lionel Messi made his senior team debut for F.C. Barcelona in a Spanish Primera Liga match with with bitter Catalonian neighbours R.C.D. Espanyol on 16 October, 2004. He however scored his debut goal seven months later in the match against Albacete on May 1st 2005.