Raúl Albiol Tortajada (born 4 September 1985) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a central defender for and captains La Liga club Villarreal.

Born in Vilamarxant, Valencian Community,[4] Albiol started playing football with two modest clubs in his native region, moving to local giants Valencia before celebrating his 10th birthday.

[7] In August 2004, whilst travelling to sign a deal to join Getafe on loan, Albiol was involved in a serious car accident, being put in intensive care.

[18] On 25 June 2009, Albiol joined Real Madrid for a fee thought to be in the region of €15 million,[19] becoming the first Spanish player signed by Florentino Pérez upon his return to the presidency.

[22] In the 2010–11 season, Albiol was relegated to the bench as Real brought in another player for his position, Ricardo Carvalho, only appearing in the league through injury or suspension to teammates;[23][24] he did start, however, in the club's domestic cup run.

[26] On 16 April, he was sent off for fouling former Valencia teammate David Villa inside the penalty area during El Clásico with Barcelona, which resulted in the first goal in a 1–1 league home draw.

[39] On 12 April 2022, Albiol was named player of the match in a 1–1 away draw against Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals second leg, securing Villarreal's qualification by winning 2–1 on aggregate.

[48] He made his debut in a major finals in the last group match against Australia with the Spanish already eliminated, playing the whole 90 minutes alongside Sergio Ramos in central defence in a 3–0 victory.

[49] A reliable and physically strong player who excels in the air, Albiol's main asset is his versatility, as he can play as a centre-back, right-back or defensive midfielder.