Sergio Ramos is about to end what has been his toughest year in football. The defender capped 2014 on a high after winning the Club World Cup and being named the tournament’s MVP, but it was all downhill from there.
The centre-back spent his Christmas holidays in recovery mode, desperately trying to be fit and ready for the opening game of the year at Mestalla, which Real Madrid lost. Days later they faced Atlético Madrid in the Spanish Cup. He committed a penalty in the first-leg as Simeone and co. ran out 2-0 winners. On top of that, he was at fault for Atleti’s two goals in the return leg as Los Blancos crashed out of the tournament.
It was a similar story for the rest of the season. He picked up a muscular injury on 4th February and was sidelined for a month. Things looked to be improving when Real Madrid put an end to Atlético’s Champions League aspirations, but things soon took a turn for the worse. They missed out on the league title and Juventus beat them to a place in the Champions League final in Berlin. Ramos’s season ended there as he did not feature in the club’s last two league games of the campaign.
After a summer game of tug and war over his future, Ramos was handed a new deal plus a pay rise. He started the new season intent on improving his performances, but another injury soon had him back on the treatment table. He hurt his shoulder during the game against Shakhtar and that injury plagued him for the next three months. The Spaniard featured intermittently, mostly in big games, which Real Madrid lost anyway. Now, with his shoulder problems behind him, a string of muscular injuries have sidelined him yet again.
All of this has resulted in a calendar year in which he has made the fewest appearances since joining the Bernabéu club. He has featured in only 59.26% of Real Madrid’s games, 19 less that in 2014.
Bron: Marca
