At Real Madrid

Van Nistelrooy in action for Real Madrid.On 15 July 2006, Ferguson confirmed that Van Nistelrooy wanted to leave Manchester United, and Real Madrid announced two weeks later that he had signed a three-year contract after being purchased for €24 million.

Van Nistelrooy scored a hat-trick in his second league match against Levante and, on 12 November 2006, he scored all four of Real Madrid's goals in a 4–1 victory over Osasuna. He won the league's Pichichi award with 25 goals as Real Madrid took home the 2006–07 title, and he also equalled the longest consecutive scoring streak in La Liga history with seven straight matches, tying a league record shared by Hugo Sánchez.



In January 2008, Van Nistelrooy signed a contract extension keeping him with Madrid until 2010, with the expiration date one day shy of his 34th birthday.[11] He underwent ankle surgery in March, and returned for the El Clásico derby against Barcelona on 7 May, in which he netted a penalty two minutes after coming on as a substitute. He finished the season with 20 goals in 32 appearances.


In November 2008, Real Madrid announced that Van Nistelrooy would miss the remainder of the 2008–09 season after exploratory arthroscopic surgery revealed a partially torn meniscus in his right knee, with an expected recovery time of six to nine months following a second operation to repair the damage. Van Nistelrooy travelled to the United States to see specialist Richard Steadman, who had previously operated on the same knee back in 2000. At the time of his injury, he had 10 goals in 12 club appearances for the season.Following the injury, he was de-registered by Real Madrid for the rest of the 2008–09 season, and his shirt number was given to Dani Parejo. In the last preseason game before the start of La Liga, Van Nistelrooy stepped on the pitch for the first time since his injury and played the last fifteen minutes of the game against Rosenborg, substituting Kaka. Van Nistelrooy came on for Cristiano Ronaldo in the 80th minute against Xerez in his first La Liga match since recovering from his injury. In the 81st minute, he provided the assist for a Benzema goal, following it with his own 88th minute goal. However, during his strike, he picked up a thigh injury. It was revealed by Real Madrid that he would be out from first team action for up to 6 weeks. On October 27 Van Nistelrooy made his second comeback of the season coming on as a substitute for Raul in the 71st minute against Alcorcon in the Copa del Rey

On 23 January 2010, Van Nistelrooy signed an 18-month contract with Hamburg that would keep him with the German club until June 2011.

Ruud Van Nistelrooy Football and Life