Raúl Bravo Sanfélix (born 14 April 1981) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a left-back or centre-back.
Having played in almost all the youth ranks at Real Madrid, he went on to have a six-year spell in the first team, where he almost always served as a backup; however, it was during that period that he reached the Spain national side, representing them at Euro 2004.
Bravo also spent several years in Greece, most notably with Olympiacos where he won six major titles, including three national championships.
Club career Real Madrid Bravo was born in Gandia, Valencian Community. After playing in his early years with two local clubs, he joined Real Madrid's youth system at 16. He was subsequently part of the Junior A side, and played for them two more seasons before arriving at the C team in Tercera División, moving to Real Madrid Castilla in Segunda División B for 2001–02.
International call-ups of some players in the first team gave Bravo the chance for a La Liga debut against Athletic Bilbao at the Santiago Bernabéu, on 6 October 2001, and he played 70 minutes in a 2–0 win. He ended up training with them – under Vicente del Bosque's management – very regularly, which eventually led to his permanent stay from the 2002–03 campaign onwards.
In January 2003, Bravo started an unsuccessful six-month loan spell at Leeds United. During Euro 2004, in which he appeared for Spain, Mick McCarthy, whilst commentating for the BBC, remarked that he looked a different player to the one in his Elland Road stint; Roberto Carlos' presence, however, restricted his playing time in the Real main squad.
Olympiacos With a chance to retain UEFA Champions League status, Bravo signed a four-year contract with Olympiacos F.C. in mid-July 2007, with the transfer fee estimated in the region of €2.3 million while the player received an annual salary of €1.3 million. After having appeared rarely due to injuries, he had a short return to Spain in the 2009 January transfer window, moving on loan to top-tier strugglers CD Numancia and having almost no impact in a relegation-ending campaign.
Bravo showed a much higher commitment than in the previous year with Olympiacos and, thanks to his performances in preseason, earned the starting left-back position over Didier Domi and Leonardo. He was released in May 2011 at the age of 30, after having contributed 18 matches to the conquest of the Super League Greece.
Later years On 31 August 2011, Bravo returned to his country and Madrid, signing for Rayo Vallecano which had just promoted to the top division. In the following off-season, after having been rarely played in his only season, he joined Beerschot A.C. in Belgium for one year.
Aged 33, Bravo returned to the Greek top flight, moving to Veria FC. His contract expired on 30 June 2015 and, two months later, he agreed to a one-year deal with Aris Thessaloniki F.C. also in the country.
International career Bravo was capped for Spain on the under-16 level in 1997–98, when the national team won the Algarve Tournament. With the under-17s he played in the Nymburk International Tournament, scoring two goals in three matches.
Bravo's full debut was on 21 August 2002 against Hungary, in a friendly. Subsequently, he was a participant at UEFA Euro 2004, playing every minute in Spain's group stage exit campaign, against Portugal, Russia and eventual champions Greece (always as a stopper); he was not recalled since, receiving a total of 14 caps.
Controversy On 28 May 2019, Bravo was arrested on charges of belonging to a criminal organisation, involved in corruption and money laundering. The investigation regarded match fixing during the 2016–17 and 2017–18 campaigns. The following January, he was accused by Serbian tabloid newspaper Telegraf of hiring a contract killer to murder his former Olympiacos teammate Darko Kovačević, which he vehemently denied, commenting: "It's a crazy story, it's nonsense."
Career statistics Club + Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueCupOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsReal Madrid 2001–02La Liga6040401402002–03La Liga2160201012003–04La Liga3211101005312004–05La Liga14040302102005–06La Liga15240302222006–07La Liga804010130Total7743302301334Leeds United (loan)2002–03Premier League5010—60Olympiacos 2007–08Super League Greece70301002008–09Super League Greece60—602009–10Super League Greece3201204402010–11Super League Greece1802020220Total63020170820Numancia (loan)2008–09La Liga6000—60Rayo Vallecano2011–12La Liga6010—70Beerschot2012–13Belgian Pro League12000—120Córdoba2013–14Segunda División2900021311Veria2014–15Super League Greece23120—251Career total22153904213026
International SpainYearAppsGoals200250200330200460Total140
Honours Real Madrid La Liga: 2002–03, 2006–07 Supercopa de España: 2003 UEFA Champions League: 2001–02 UEFA Super Cup: 2002
Olympiacos Super League Greece: 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11 Greek Football Cup: 2007–08
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