Sergio Ramos: All you need to know about ‘El Capitano’
Ending his 16 years of reign at the capital club, Sergio Ramos decided to leave Real Madrid after talks between him and club president Florentino Perez over a new deal hit rock bottom.
It is said that Sergio Ramos, 35, wanted a two-year contract from Los Blancos, but Perez was adamant on handing a one-year deal as it has been the club’s policy for players over 30 years of age.
While Sergio Ramos did not demand any pay rise, the negotiations hit the roadblock over the tenure and the defender is now one of the hottest commodities in European football.
Sergio Ramos leaving Madrid is an open invitation to every top club across Europe. While his recent injury record is alarming, the experience and the leadership quality he brings is simply unmatchable.
Sergio Ramos has exceeded expectations both on and off the field and has held several records like being the only defender to score in 17 consecutive La Liga seasons.
So as he gears up for a new adventure in his playing career, we take a look at everything that has defined his Real Madrid career so far.
How many titles has Sergio Ramos won in his career?
Sergio Ramos arrived at Real Madrid in 2005 as a 19-year-old from fellow La Liga side Sevilla. Over the 16 years with Real Madrid, the defender went on to win every trophy there ever is to be won in European football.
Sergio Ramos has won five La Liga titles, four UEFA Champions League titles, four Spanish Super Cups, four FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups and two Copa del Rey honours.
It was, in fact, his goal against Atletico Madrid in the 2014 UEFA Champions League final which marked a comeback win for Los Blancos. Ramos was at it again, this time in the 2016 UCL final against Atletico once more. This time, Real won the title on penalties. This made him the only defender to score in two different European Cup finals in the UEFA Champions League era.
Known for his sheer goal-scoring knack despite being a defender, Ramos has scored in the final of the UEFA Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup. In all, Ramos has won a whopping 22 trophies with Real Madrid.
Who are the managers Sergio Ramos has played under?
Ramos was named as one of Real Madrid's four captains ahead of the 2009-10 season and his legacy as captain comes down to the fact that he has played under as many as 12 different managers at Real Madrid.
The list includes Vanderlei Luxemburgo, Juan Ramos Lopez, Fabio Capello, Bernd Schuster, Juande Ramos, Manuel Pellegrini, Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Rafael Benitez, Zinedine Zidane (twice), Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari.
What is Sergio Ramos’ nickname?
While most of Real Madrid’s fans call him El Capitano, Sergio Ramos was, in fact, nicknamed Schuster - after former Germany great Bernd Schuster - while growing up. Ramos used to play as a striker in his childhood and he eventually got to play under the German during his brief stint at Real Madrid between 2007 and 2008.
While this was his nickname in the footballing circle, Sergio Ramos is called “Cuqui” in his family. The term Cuqui translates to “cutie” or “sweetie” and his Real Madrid teammates have since picked up the name.
While captain is Spanish roughly translates to capitán, Ramos earned the title of ‘El Capitano’ from the fans which was previously held by former captains like Francesco Totti of AS Roma and Paolo Maldini of AC Milan.
Sergio Ramos’ red card record - the most in league’s history
Sergio Ramos has earned the reputation of being a rugged defender. This has resulted in him earning the most number of cards (191) in La Liga history. While 171 of those have been yellow, the remaining 20 are reds which makes him the most sent-off player in La Liga history. Overall, the defender has been sent off a whopping 26 times in all competitions, this involves five sending offs in El Clasico fixtures.
His most recent red card in a Clasico fixture came in Barcelona’s 3-2 win over Real Madrid in April 2017.
Sergio Ramos’ tattoos and their meaning
Sergio Ramos loves tattoos. He has more than 42 designs inked on his body, four of which are on his fingers. Those are numbers 35, 32, 19 and 90+. 35 and 32 are his squad numbers with Sevilla, 19 is the number he wore when he won his first national cap for Spain and 90+ represents the stoppage-time goal he scored in the 2014 UEFA Champions League final. In addition to that, he also has imprinted his cultural roots, FIFA World Cup and Champions League trophies and the names of his family members amongst others.
Featured photo: AFP / Gabriel Bouys