Sergio Ramos

Sergio Ramos García (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈseɾxjo ˈramoz ɣaɾˈθi.a]; born 30 March 1986) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for and captains both Real Madrid and the Spanish national team as a centre back. He has also played as a right back. Ramos is widely regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation and has also received praise for his passing and goalscoring capabilities.

After emerging through Sevilla's youth academy and spending two seasons with the senior side, Ramos moved to Real Madrid in the summer of 2005. Since then, he has gone on to become a mainstay for Real Madrid and has won 21 major honours, including four La Liga titles and four UEFA Champions League titles, becoming one of La Liga's top goalscorers from a defensive position. He played a crucial part in the build-up to all four UEFA Champions League wins, being named in the competition Squad of the Season each time. He also notably scored the equalizer in the 93rd minute of the 2014 UEFA Champions League Final.

Ramos has been named to the FIFPro World11 ten times; a record for a defender, and the third-most all-time. He has also been elected to the UEFA Team of the Year eight times; also a record for a defender, and third-most all-time. Additionally, Ramos has been named La Liga's Best Defender a record five times, and to the La Liga Team of the Season in 2015–16.

Internationally, Ramos represented the Spanish national team at four World Cups and three European Championships. He won the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the UEFA European Championship in 2008 and 2012, being named to the FIFA World Cup Dream Team in 2010, and the UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament in 2012. He made his first appearance for Spain at the age of 18 and, in 2013, he became the nation's youngest player to ever reach 100 caps. Ramos currently holds the record as the most capped player in the history of the Spanish national team and is his country's tenth-highest all-time goalscorer.

Club career

Sevilla

Born in Camas, Seville, Andalusia, Ramos began his career at local side Sevilla, emerging through the club's youth system alongside Jesús Navas and Antonio Puerta. He made his first-team – and La Liga – debut on 1 February 2004, coming on as a 64th-minute substitute for Francisco Gallardo in a 0–1 away loss against Deportivo de La Coruña.

In the 2004–05 season, Ramos appeared in 41 games as Sevilla finished sixth and qualified to the UEFA Cup, scoring in home fixtures against Real Sociedad (2–1) and Real Madrid (2–2). In the season's edition of that European tournament, he scored his first continental goal, heading to conclude a 2–0 win over CD Nacional at the Estadio Ramon Sánchez Pizjuán in the first round (4–1 aggregate).

Real Madrid

2005–09: Record transfer and early days

In the summer of 2005, Ramos was purchased by Real Madrid for €27 million, a record for a Spanish defender. He was the only Spanish player brought in during Florentino Pérez's first stint as Real's president.

At the club, Ramos was assigned the number 4 shirt, previously worn by Fernando Hierro. On 6 December 2005, he netted his first goal for the Merengues, in a 1–2 UEFA Champions League group stage loss at Olympiacos.

During his first seasons, Ramos played as a centre back, is also used as an emergency defensive midfielder on occasion. However, with the arrival of Christoph Metzelder and Pepe in the 2007–08 season, he was again relocated to right back. In his first four seasons at Real Madrid, Ramos displayed a goalscoring instinct unusual to many defenders, netting more than 20 goals overall. He also received the first nine of his 24 red cards for the club, including four in his debut season. His first red card came after two bookable offences in a 1–0 away loss to RCD Espanyol on 18 September 2005.

During the 2006–07 season, Ramos scored five goals, including one in a 3–3 draw with FC Barcelona, as Real Madrid won a record 30th Spanish league championship.

On 4 May 2008, he assisted Gonzalo Higuaín in the 89th minute against CA Osasuna in an eventual 2–1 away win, the match that sealed the club's 31st league championship. On the final day of the season, he scored twice in a 5–2 home win against already relegated Levante UD: one through a header, and another an individual effort; these goals taking his league tally for the 2007–08 season to five.

On 24 August 2008, Ramos scored in the 2008 Supercopa de España second leg against Valencia, making the score 2–1 in an eventual 4–2 and 6–5 aggregate win. The victory came despite Real Madrid playing with only nine men for a long period of time after Rafael van der Vaart and Ruud van Nistelrooy was sent off. Although Ramos experienced a slight dip in form during the early part of the 2008–09 season, he returned to his best and on 11 January 2009, scoring an acrobatic volley in a 3–0 triumph at RCD Mallorca. He continued his scoring run the following week in a 3–1 home win against Osasuna.

Ramos was named in both FIFA and UEFA's 2008 Team of the Year, adding the FIFPro Team of the Year 2007–08 accolade. He also finished 21st in the European Player of the Year nomination for 2008.

2009–15: Breakout and team mainstay

At the start of the 2009–10 season, Ramos was appointed as one of Real Madrid's four captains. Because Pepe had suffered a serious knee injury during this campaign, Ramos was often deployed as a central defender. He scored four goals in 33 league matches; and, on 21 February 2010, he played his 200th official match for the capital team against Villarreal CF (150 in the first division). Despite these personal highlights, Los Blancos finished the campaign without picking up any silverware.

2015–present: Captaincy and sustained success

Ramos agreed on a new five-year contract with Real Madrid in August 2015, tying him to the club until 2020. He was also made captain after the transfer of Casillas to FC Porto. On 8 November, Ramos scored his first goal of the season away to Sevilla, it was an overhead kick which forced him to get substituted due to landing on his injured left shoulder.^{[citation needed]}

On 20 December 2015, Ramos captained Madrid to a 10–2 victory over Rayo Vallecano, the club's highest-scoring La Liga victory in 55 years. The following 13 March, he received his 20th red card for Real Madrid in a 2–1 win over Las Palmas, having earlier scored the game's opening goal with a header from an Isco corner kick. On 2 April 2016, he returned from suspension in a 2–1 victory against Barcelona at Camp Nou, where he was again sent off, receiving his 21st red card and fourth in a Clásico fixture.

Real Madrid reached the 2016 UEFA Champions League Final, where they faced Atlético Madrid. Ramos once again scored in a final, putting Real ahead in the first half. After a second-half equaliser from Atlético, he then scored a penalty in the shoot-out which resulted in Real winning 5–3; thus, he lifted his first UEFA Champions trophy as a captain. According to author Michael Cox, he also notably "tipped the balance of the game toward Real Madrid" by tripping Yannick Carrasco up and stopping a three-on-one counter in stoppage time, with 30 seconds remaining and the score 1–1. He was named man of the match by UEFA after the game. By winning the final, Real Madrid earned the right to play against the winners of the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League, Sevilla, in the 2016 UEFA Super Cup. Ramos ended 2015–16 with three goals in 33 games which were his lowest goal tally and the fewest matches he played in any season at Real Madrid due to ongoing injuries.

International career

Early international career and 2006 FIFA World Cup

In 2004, Ramos became an instant hit for Spain's under-19, for whom he played six international matches. During the 2004 U19 Euro, Ramos was a key figure for Spain as he started in four out of five of their matches on the way to winning their second U19 European Championship, including scoring a decisive penalty in the Semi-final penalty-shootout against Ukraine. On 26 March 2005, in a 3–0 friendly win over China in Salamanca, he first appeared for the senior side at only 18 years and 361 days of age, making him the youngest player to play for the national team in the last 55 years. He held this record until 1 March 2006, when it was broken by Cesc Fàbregas in a friendly match against Côte d'Ivoire.

On 12 October 2005, Ramos scored his first two international goals in a 6–0 away thrashing of San Marino for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. He was selected for the final stages in Germany and, after the international retirement of Real Madrid teammate Míchel Salgado, became the undisputed first-choice right-back. Despite wearing the number 4 jersey for Real Madrid, Ramos admitted he wears the number 15 for Spain in memory of his close friend and former Sevilla teammate Puerta, who died in August 2007 and made his Spain debut wearing No. 15.

Euro 2008

Throughout Spain's UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, Ramos was a regular member of the starting eleven as the national side finished first in its group, above Sweden. He scored two goals, including one in a 3–1 away win over Denmark, in 11 appearances. In the tournament's final stages, Ramos played in all matches and minutes, except the 2–1 group stage win against Greece. In the final, his pass nearly set up Marcos Senna's first international goal, but the latter missed his opportunity by inches. During the celebrations after the 1–0 defeat of Germany, he wore a T-shirt in honour of his late friend Puerta.

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2010 FIFA World Cup

Ramos was selected in the squad for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa, as Spain finished in third. On 3 June 2010, he captained Spain for the first time, in a 1–0 friendly win over South Korea in Innsbruck, Austria.

At the 2010 World Cup, held in the same country, Ramos played every minute of the tournament as a right-back, helping Spain keep five clean sheets and reach the final, which they won 1–0 against the Netherlands; he topped the tournament's Castrol Performance Index with a score of 9.79. Despite playing at right-back, he also completed more solo runs than any other player in the tournament, 31.

Euro 2012

Ramos returned to the heart of the defence for Euro 2012. When asked about his role change, he replied: “I have adapted and feel comfortable in the middle, but I am a World and European champion at right-back.” He played all the games in Poland and Ukraine alongside Barcelona's Gerard Piqué and, in the semi-finals against Portugal, he converted his penalty shootout attempt in an eventual 4–2 win (0–0 after 120 minutes), scoring for the eventual champions in Panenka-style. On 1 July, Ramos won his third trophy with the Spanish senior National Team as they thrashed Italy 4–0 in the Final. Ramos' performances during the Euro earned him a place in the Team of The Tournament. Ramos wore another T-shirt during Spain's Euro 2012 celebrations to pay homage to his late friend Puerta.

2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2014 FIFA World Cup

On 22 March 2013, Ramos celebrated his 100th cap by opening the scoring in a 1–1 draw with Finland in Gijón for the 2014 World Cup qualifiers. He became the youngest European player ever to reach that figure in the process, surpassing Germany's Lukas Podolski. In June, Ramos contested in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil, starting every match as Spain lost to the hosts in the final. He captained the side for their second group game, a 10–0 win over Tahiti at the Maracanã, which is the biggest win of his career. On 30 June, he missed a penalty kick in the 3–0 Confederations Cup Final loss to Brazil.

Ramos was selected for his third World Cup in 2014. He played the full 90 minutes of each of the team's matches in Brazil, each with a different partner in central defence, as the reigning champions were eliminated from the group stage.

Euro 2016 and 2018 FIFA World Cup

In February 2016, Ramos won the Luis Aragonés Award by Marca which distinguished him as the best player of the national team in the past year. With David de Gea selected ahead of Iker Casillas in Spain's starting line-up, Ramos captained the team at UEFA Euro 2016. On 21 June 2016, he had a penalty kick saved by Danijel Subašić in a 2–1 loss to Croatia. Spain finished their Euro group as runners-up and crashed out in the Round of 16 against Italy.

On 23 March 2018, days before turning 32, Ramos earned his 150th cap for Spain in a 1–1 friendly draw with Germany in Düsseldorf. Only Iker Casillas had previously reached the mark for the team.

Ramos was included in the Spain squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup and would go into his fourth tournament, and first World Cup as Captain after Iker Casillas missed out. He played in all three of Spain's Group stage matches as they topped the 'Group of Death' ahead of European Champions Portugal. In the Round of 16 against Russia, Ramos believed he scored the opening goal but it was later credited as a Sergei Ignashevich own goal. The match ended 1–1 after Extra Time and was decided on penalties (4–2) as the hosts eliminated La Roja. Ramos scored Spain's fourth penalty but it wasn't enough as teammates Koke and Aspas both had their penalties saved.

2018–19 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2020 qualification

With new coach Luis Enrique, Ramos retained captaincy of the national team. He played in all four of Spain's 2018–19 UEFA Nations League group matches, becoming the nation's top scorer in the group with three goals – scoring once against England and twice against Croatia. Spain finished second in their UEFA Nations League Group, which saw them miss out on the 2019 UEFA Nations League Finals. In March 2019, Ramos scored the winner in Spain's first UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying match against Norway through another Panenka penalty in a 2–1 win. This was his tenth penalty of the season, scoring them all. It was also his fifth consecutive match scoring for Spain, which is a personal record. Spain manager Enrique hailed Ramos as a 'unique player in history' after the match.

In the second Euro 2020 qualification match, away to Malta, Ramos did not score for the first time in six matches for Spain – failing to extend his scoring streak. However, the match ended 2–0 to Spain which was his 121st win with La Roja, equaling the all-time record of Iker Casillas. On 7 June 2019, Ramos broke the record of most international victories with 122, following a 4–1 victory against the Faroe Islands, scoring Spain's opening goal in the process. Three days later, ahead of the match against Sweden, Ramos received a plaque from the Spanish Football Federation to commemorate his record. The match ended with a 3–0 win for Spain, where he scored the first goal and extended his tally to 123 international victories. On 5 September 2019, Ramos scored from a penalty kick his 21st international goal to open the score in Spain's 2–1 away win over Romania in a Euro 2020 qualifier, which made him the joint 10th top scorer in the history of the national team, alongside Míchel. On 8 September, Ramos won his 167th cap for Spain in a 4–0 home win over the Faroe Islands in a Euro 2020 qualifier; with this appearance, he equalled Iker Casillas as Spain's most capped player of all time. On 12 October 2019, he became the nation's most capped player.

Player profile

Style of play

Regarded as one of the best defenders in the world, Ramos is a physically strong player who excels in the air due to his elevation, eye for goal, and heading accuracy, making him a goal threat on set-pieces; he is also a competent, aggressive tackler. In addition to his defensive skills and goalscoring ability, he is gifted with pace, good technical ability, as well as good distribution, passing, and crossing ability. According to Spanish sports newspaper Marca, FIFA's official records confirmed that in 2015, Ramos was clocked at a sprinting speed of 30.6 kilometres per hour, making him one of the fastest footballers in the world at the time. He is also an accurate penalty taker and is known for often using the Panenka technique when taking them.

Ramos has earned plaudits for his leadership, athleticism, technical prowess, and his ability to excel both offensively and defensively, as well as his versatility, which allows him to be deployed as a centre back and as a full-back; in his youth, he often played as a right-back, while he later established himself as a centre-back as his career progressed. Due to his wide range of skills, his former Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has compared him to legendary defender Paolo Maldini; he went on to describe him as "the best defender in the world at the moment" in 2014, a view which was echoed by Giorgio Chiellini in 2020. Ramos has also occasionally been deployed as a central or defensive midfielder, in particular under Ancelotti during the 2014–15 season. Ramos has been praised for his decisive performances in important games, most notably for Real Madrid, due to his tendency to score crucial goals for his team, and is considered by several pundits to be one of the most reliable performers in high-pressure situations. However, his tactical sense, consistency, and concentration from match to match have been questioned at times by pundits and other footballing figures, who have accused him of being too impulsive in his challenges or prone to occasional defensive errors throughout the course a season.^[

Ramos is also often criticised in the media for using excessive, reckless force while playing, as well as for his lack of discipline and tendency to pick-up an excessive number of unnecessary cards; he has also been accused of diving.

Disciplinary record

Ramos holds multiple disciplinary records, for Real Madrid, in the Champions League, La Liga, El Clásico, and in the Spanish national team.

Ramos holds the record for being the most carded player in La Liga, with 187 cards. His 167 yellow cards surpass Alberto Lopo, the former record holder for La Liga yellow cards. The remaining 20 are red cards, making him the most sent-off player in La Liga as well. His La Liga card record is higher than any other player's in the major European league, making him the most booked player in all major European leagues.

In the Champions League, Ramos has amassed 40 yellow cards and 4 red cards (3 of which were straight red cards), making him both the most-carded player and joint-most red-carded player in Champions League history.

Lastly, Ramos also holds the record for being the most carded player in the history of the Spanish national team, with 24 yellow cards.

Personal life

Ramos entered a relationship with journalist/presenter Pilar Rubio in September 2012. This was confirmed by both at the FIFA Ballon d'Or. They have three sons together: Sergio Jr (born 6 May 2014), Marco (born 27 November 2015) and Alejandro (born 25 March 2018). On 16 July 2018, Ramos proposed to long-term girlfriend Pilar Rubio and the couple got engaged. The couple married in Ramos' home-town of Seville on 15 June 2019.

Ramos has been described as a 'family person' and has a close relationship with his siblings and parents. Rene, Ramos' brother, is currently his football agent. Ramos is a fan of bullfighting and he is a personal friend of matador Alejandro Talavante. He celebrated victories for both club and country by playing with a matador's cape. Ramos is also a keen horse aficionado, owning a stud farm in his native Andalusia specifically dedicated to the breeding of the Andalusian horse. Ramos' horse, 'Yucatán SR4' became a World Champion in 2018.^{[citation needed]} Ramos is Catholic and has a tattoo of Mary which covers the top half of his left arm.

Amazon Prime documentary

In January 2019, Amazon Prime and Ramos himself announced they will release an eight-episode docu-series on Ramos' life on and off the pitch. This would be the first-ever time the public would see the personal side of Ramos and his family. On 5 March, during Real Madrid's Champions League Round of 16-second leg match, Ramos was suspended and watched the match from his VIP area in the stands. His reactions were filmed by the Amazon Prime crew. This sparked controversy as Real Madrid lost that match and were eliminated from the Champions League, but Ramos suggested on his social media networks that there were 'certain commitments made and it never remotely went through my head that the game could have turned out as it did'.