The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word DIEGO
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
D
I
E
G
O
More clues leading to the result DIEGO
- Spaniard possibly to pass on turn
- Spaniard, perhaps, to pass on turn
- Spaniard to make departure twice?
- One departure after another for Spaniard
- What’s thrown game — his handling of the ball?
- One was a famous footballer to lose power and energy
- Name of Spaniard, maker of impression on game
- Finish work for Spanish guy
- Passes to Maradona
- Spaniard has to pass over square to get money from bank
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "One was a famous footballer" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case one was a famous footballer = diego.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.