Just how calamitous an impact will the exit of the highly decorated defender have on the La Décima winning Spaniards?
Manchester United have reportedly made a £28.6m bid for Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos, believing the 29-year-old wants to leave the Spanish giants after they failed to offer him an extension to his contract, which expires in 2017.
For Louis van Gaal and Red Devils fans everywhere, acquiring a proven centre-back to fill the void they so desperately have at the back, at a very good price (all things considered in today’s transfer market), looks like a fantastic piece of business.
A player who, since joining from Sevilla in 2005, has accrued 445 appearances and won every major honour for the Bernabéu club, including scoring their injury-time equaliser in their Champions League final victory over Atletico Madrid in 2014.
Not to mention the 128 international caps, as well as being in the starting line-up for Spain as they won Euro 2008, Euro 2012 and the 2010 World Cup. It’s an enviable footballing CV.
And according to Sky Sports’ Spanish football expert Graham Hunter, he wants to talk to Man United and no-one else: “Ramos has told Madrid directly that he is absolutely and completely committed to leaving the club this summer, that he specifically wants them to begin negotiations with Manchester United and that he doesn’t want them to negotiate with anybody except Manchester United.”
Very flattering indeed for the Old Trafford outfit.
But, regardless of how good this may be for United, could this spell disaster for Real Madrid?
Firstly losing a player of the calibre of Ramos is a disaster in itself, especially when his reasons for leaving are self-inflicted. But, it’s an even bigger blow to a team that isn’t exactly plush with centre-backs.
They have Raphaël Varane, no doubt a very talented young defender, and of course Pepe, but the less said about the Portuguese, particularly his disciplinary record, the better. After that, who do they turn to? What’s more, the transfer market isn’t exactly awash with high-quality CBs – Man United can tell you that.
Let’s not forget the disharmony this could cause within the Real Madrid ranks. Ramos is a beloved fans’ favourite, but his support of the now sacked Carlo Ancelotti and his pursuit of a new contract has annoyed Florentino Pérez. And when you get on the bad side of the Los Blancos President, it doesn’t usually end well.
But will the treatment of an integral part of the team, who now seems set on leaving, come back to haunt the Madrid boss? Most footballers just want to be loved and appreciated. When you don’t, well, they get ideas about leaving. And when a player like Ramos – who was so loved – thinks it’s time to go, what does that tell players who aren’t given the full support of the club and fans alike?
Ask Bale, scorer of the winner in both their Champions League final win and Copa del Rey victories two seasons ago. He’s gone from hero to zero in the space of a season. Karim Benzema, a player who has performed admirably for Los Merengues for six seasons, notching 87 goals in 145 appearances, is still not deemed ‘Galactico’ enough for the club. (Both these players have also been heavily linked to United in the past.) Could Ramos’s exit spark an exodus of stunning proportions?
Last but definitely not least, could this scupper Real’s chances of signing David de Gea?
The ‘will he/won’t he’ saga continues, and although it seemed an inevitability that the young Spaniard would be turning out in the white of Madrid rather than the red of Man United come the start of the season, the news about Ramos could just give the Fans’ Player of the Year and Players’ Player of the Year for two seasons running second thoughts. ‘Maybe the grass isn’t always greener at the Bernabeu? Maybe, just maybe, I should stay at Old Trafford where I’m adored and worshipped by the fans? Hell, if I wait a little longer, there might just be more Madrid players in Manchester than the Spanish capital?’
Of course, this is all speculation. Real Madrid is a huge club. Possibly the biggest in the world. One player will not topple everything that has been built before it. But this is as big as a potential disaster Madrid have faced in recent years, and if Ramos does end up at the 20-time Premier League winners next season, Perez and the club will need to consider their next few moves very carefully.
