Continuing with the theme of former Galacticos, Raul could also have made his way to Ewood Park under the stewardship of Sam Allardyce, but the former Spain international decided against a Premier League switch. Even later still, under following boss Steve Kean, Schalke general manager Horst Heldt shared a public statement that, again, Blackburn's advances had been rebuffed by the Bundesliga club at the player's request. Whether new owners Venkys were prepared to offer the veteran a continuation of his £100,000 per week deal, remains as speculation. A deal appeared to be far more likely under Allardyce, given his relationship with former Real Madrid legend Michel Salgado, especially with the former Bolton boss notoriously liking to chance his arm with experienced signings. Under Kean, at a time when Rovers boasted merely David Goodwillie in attack, due to a squad clear-out, Raul would undoubtedly have been expected to make quite a contribution to his potential suitors survival efforts. Eventually, Yakubu was snapped up, with the Nigerian striker registering an impressive 17 goals in 30 games for Blackburn. Close, but he's not quite Raul.
