After finishing his Real Madrid career with more goals than games, not many would argue that superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is the greatest player in the club's long history, but he perhaps achieved this at the expense of a number of other big names. Here are 10 stars who left Los Blancos due to his presence.
Click through the gallery above to see 10 players who left Real, directly or indirectly, because of Ronaldo.
The Portuguese forward became the most expensive player in world football when he left Manchester United for Real in 2009, a transfer that was to leave an ever-lasting impact on the Spanish giants.
While FC Barcelona had a generational talent in Lionel Messi, Los Blancos had now secured the signature of not only one of the best players in the world, but also one of the most hard-working. Ronaldo did not join Real to bask in his previous glory; he saw it as the start of a new chapter.
The Portugal talisman, along with new arrivals Kaka, Karim Benzema and Xabi Alonso, had become part of a new-look Real side that was determined to take Pep Guardiola's Barcelona down under the presidency of Florentino Perez.
Due to his importance in the team, there were a number of other players whose time was up at the club, one of them perhaps a season before Ronaldo actually joined. Robinho, who played predominantly off the left at Real, was sold to Manchester City for big money in 2008, perhaps to clear the red carpet for who was to come.
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Although Ronaldo only signed for Real the following year, he did go close a season earlier, but had his transfer wishes blocked by then Red Devils boss Sir Alex Ferguson. Despite this, there did appear to be a verbal agreement between the player and the LaLiga giants, one that materialised a year later.
Robinho's sale was therefore necessary not only due to his position on the field, but for the cash injection it gave the club that allowed them to bring Ronaldo in for his reported fee of about €94 million (R1.5 billion).
In the same window he arrived, Dutch winger Arjen Robben was sold to German giants Bayern Munich. It was claimed that the former Netherlands international was let go for the club to recover funds in transfer fees and wages. Robben, although gifted, did not seem to suit the team's system at the time, and was happy to move on.
In January 2010, half a season after Ronaldo's arrival, striker Ruud van Nistelrooy left the Madrid club on a free transfer. Perhaps it is forgotten, but the Portuguese was used across the front three in his first season at Real, and actually scored most of his goals from the centre-forward role.
Former Spanish wonderkid Sergio Canales, now 28 and a regular starter at Real Betis, might have enjoyed his Real career more had he not had Ronaldo to compete with. The left-footer played centrally or on the left side of attack, but failed to get going. He was loaned out twice before securing a permanent move in 2014.
The same could be said for Argentina international Angel Di Maria, who played as a left-winger earlier in his career. Although he enjoyed some fine moments in the famous white jersey, he was forced to play out of his most comfortable position, resulting in his exit in 2014.
Denis Cheryshev and Jese Rodriguez were perhaps also unlucky for similar reasons, but a number of strikers – such as Gonzalo Higuain, Alvaro Morata and Mariano Diaz – were seemingly also shipped out to suit the talisman too.
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With Ronaldo being the club's main goalscorer, the team did not need its other strikers to find the back of the net as regularly as they may have liked, but rather to play to the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's strengths.
An example of this is French forward Karim Benzema, who, for many years, sacrificed his own game for the sake of Ronaldo, and therefore for the sake of the team.
Do you think Real regret selling any of these players? Let us know in the comments section below.
