Rubén de la Red Gutiérrez (born June 5, 1985 in
Madrid) is a Spanish football midfielder who
currently plays for Real Madrid.
De la Red arrived at the Real Madrid youth system
when he was just 14 (1999/00), the youngest in
Cadete B. At one point, he was transferred to CD
Móstoles after being told he was not good enough,
but he was soon re-signed by Madrid. After his
fourth season with the club, youth coach Quique
Sánchez Flores, who was moving to Getafe CF, wanted
de la Red to join him at his new club, but Madrid
turned him down. De la Red said: "It is a pride that
Quique was interested so much in me, but for me Real
Madrid is the number one choice, that is clear;
everything else comes afterwards".
De la Red made his first-team debut on November 10,
2004 against CD Tenerife in the Copa del Rey. During
the 2006-07 season, he was also called-up to the
first team by manager Fabio Capello, along with
teammates Miguel Torres and Miguel Ángel Nieto, and
made seven appearances during the La Liga-winning
campaign.
On August 31, 2007, de la Red was transferred to
Getafe CF, with Real Madrid having an option to
re-buy the next two years. There, he established
himself as an important first team player, usually
assuming the role of playmaker, having been joined
at Getafe by another Real Madrid canterano, Esteban
Granero, who arrived on loan. During the season, he
was forced, due to injuries to teammates, to perform
as central defender, notably in the UEFA Cup tie
against Bayern Munich.
Real Madrid president Ramón Calderón confirmed in
May 2008 that, along with Granero and Javi García,
De la Red would return to the Bernabéu for 2008-09.
He could be used in a swap deal involving a number
of potential targets, although Real Madrid coach
Bernd Schuster has stated that he would like to give
the midfielder a chance to impress in his team.
De la Red was first called by Spain for a March 26,
2008 friendly against Italy, but did not debut.
Uncapped, he was named in the nation's squad of 23
for Euro 2008 by coach Luis Aragonés, but would
appear in two friendly games against Peru and USA
prior to the continental competition. During the
tournament's final group stage match, he scored his
first international goal with a powerful strike
against Greece, on 18 June.
