I’ll always have a soft spot for Guti (Video)

A conversation emerged on Twitter early on Friday evening about understated capabilities of a former Real Madrid star. No, it wasn’t a discussion on Raul Gonzalez, Fernando Hierro or Zinedine Zidane, but rather of one player that, some might argue, never received the praise he absolutely deserved.

I’m talking, of course, about José María Gutiérrez Hernández, or Guti as he is more commonly known. The midfielder, who was linked with a move to West Ham United over the summer, recently confirmed his retirement to the game, much to the disappointment of all those who admired the blonde bombshell in the middle of the park.

The Spaniard was tremendously under-rated by a number of those who regularly failed to view him on a consistent basis while at Madrid, of whom he spent 24 years in the Spanish capital. However, having made 542 appearances following his debut in 1995, his talent and class was evident for all of those to be seen.

Cruelly overlooked for the national side, it was a shame to see the 35-year-old make just 13 appearances for Spain. One of the finest passers of the ball the game has seen; he made the difficult look unequivocally easy, with the reverse pass one of his many weapons in his arsenal. The Spaniard insisted, following his retirement earlier this month, that he would like to coach the Real youth team in the future, something that would undoubtedly improve the current crop coming through the academy ranks at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.

However, none will every replicate the quality and class that Guti possessed. It’s a shame the Premier League never got to see a player of his ilk during his career, despite the best efforts of Sam Allardyce. But while the midfielder has now hung up his boots, his capability will live on in the memory of those that had the pleasure of seeing him play.