Real Madrid legend claims the club 'screwed up his life' and made him feel 'miserable' and 'broken'

A former Real Madrid player who won two Champions Leagues at Los Blancos once claimed that the club ruined his life in an emotional rant.

For most footballers, playing for the world’s biggest club, Real Madrid, is a dream which very few achieve.

Icons such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Luka Modric flourished in the Spanish capital and lit up the Santiago Bernabeu throughout their time at the 15-time European champions.

While summer signings Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen will hope to one day be considered legends by the club’s supporters.

But one former player, despite winning eight major trophies including two Champions League crowns and three La Liga titles, previously revealed that his life was made “miserable” by then-Real Madrid sporting director Predrag Mijatovic.

Ivan Helguera made 346 appearances for Real Madrid between 1999 and 2007, as well as representing AS Roma, Espanyol and Valencia before retiring in 2008.

Ivan Helguera in action for Real Madrid (Credit:Getty)

In a podcast with Offsiders, Helguera, now 50, opened up about his time at Madrid and revealed how he was stripped of his number and was told he was no longer needed despite his service to the club across an eight-season period.

"It was very tough," he admitted. "The board, the president especially (Ramón Calderón), and a former player who I didn't expect from him, who was the sporting director, Mijatovic. They took away my number and told me I wasn't going to play again. They made my life miserable. I don't really know why. They told me they wanted to sell me. I had a three-year contract, and I didn't understand it because I had just won the league and had played."

The Spaniard continued, then speaking about former Madrid boss Fabio Capello.

Fabio Capello was Real Madrid head coach (Credit:Getty)

"The president didn't even greet me, and I was playing," Helguera added. "Mijatovic, who was a phenomenon to me, is suddenly doing this to me. But that's football. Capello told me: 'These guys tell me not to even play you in training.' The following year, Mijatovic told me that they were taking away my number and were going to make my life miserable again."