I was a god at Real Madrid with Cristiano Ronaldo but I blew millions on holidays, cars, women and fathering children

EX-EVERTON star Royston Drenthe has revealed how he blew a fortune after fathering EIGHT children.

The Dutch winger, 36, spent five years at Real Madrid from 2007 and won both the LaLiga title and Spanish Super Cup while being Cristiano Ronaldo’s team-mate.

GettyFormer Everton ace Royston Drenthe has revealed how he blew his millions[/caption]

GettyRoyston Drenthe, left, pictured with Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid[/caption]

Towards the end of his stint at the Bernabeu, he had a season-long loan in England with Everton, bagging four goals in 27 games.

Drenthe, who previously said he would have Ross Barkley rather than the five-time Ballon D’Or winner in his ultimate five-a-side team of players he’d played with, has spoken about his past love of women and partying.

Now he has opened up on how he lost the millions he earned on parties, holidays and fast cars.

And Drenthe, who now has a modest job as a health worker in Holland, blamed women above all for his financial downfall.

The former attacker, who attempted to launch a rap career while still playing, recently appeared on a Dutch TV travel show entitled World’s Most Dangerous Roads.

And the ex-Reading and Sheffield Wednesday ace shared a car journey through South Africa with former Miss Belgium Goedele Liekens, who is now a sexologist and politician.

On the programme, Drenthe told her: “I felt like a god at Real Madrid, playing alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, and I am proud of it.

“But I also liked to party hard in this world of glitter and glamour. I used to drink a lot even though I had to train the next day.

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“In my first year with them I earned £1.4million, and received another £430,000 as a signing-on bonus.

“But I am not a rich man. I squandered the money on holidays and nice cars.”

Drenthe, who announced his retirement from football in November, continued: “Women have also been a very big reason for the money disappearing.

“I have three children with my first wife, aged 15, 14 and three. I fell in love with another woman and had a son with her, and we also got married.

“Then I married someone else in 2016, and had two more kids with her.”

The star, who won a single cap for Holland, went on to name two further children from a later relationship.

Then he added: “Had I shown more dedication I might still be playing high-level football, similar to Cristiano Ronaldo.

“He didn’t used to party a lot back in the day. If he had done so, he’d have retired from football by now.”

Rollercoaster career

Drenthe was part of the Netherlands Under-21 side that won the Euros in 2007, beating England en route to the final as he was named Player of the Tournament.

He had a rollercoaster career that saw him star for 15 different clubs across England, Holland, Spain, Turkey, Russia and the United Arab Emirates.

And it even included an initial retirement in 2016, before returning in 2018.

His spell at Madrid was followed by his time with Russian side Alania Vladikavkaz, when he previously recalled drinking vodka on the team bus to deal with the boredom he experienced there.

Drenthe was also named a shock candidate to take over from Daniel Craig as James Bond thanks in part to his previous acting role as a gangsta in Dutch crime drama Mocro Maffia in 2021.

GettyRoyston Drenthe spent five years at Real madrid and earned over £1.8m in his first season[/caption]