For the past 15 years, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been considered the best attackers in world soccer. If you’re a defender, and by that I mean a center back, one of the best defenders of the last 15 years is Sergio Ramos.

Ramos is a legend at the best club in the world, Real Madrid. He played a total of 16 seasons for Real Madrid, from 2005 to 2021. In total, he played 671 matches. This is the fourth highest total in Real Madrid”s history. He”s also a goal-scoring defender, having scored 101 goals.

In a Real Madrid uniform, Ramos has collected 22 trophies, including five Spanish Primera Liga titles and four UEFA Champions League (UCL) titles.

He is also a legend with the Spanish national team. A key player in the golden age of Spanish soccer, he played for the Spanish national team from 2005 to 2021, totaling 180 caps. He’s the number one player in the history of the Spanish national team.

He’s also got a stellar record. He was part of the team that won the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, as well as back-to-back Euro 2008 and Euro 2012 titles. Real Madrid and Spanish soccer’s defense has been dominated by Ramos.

Ramos is 37 years old this year. The passage of time has not been kind to him. In 2021, Ramos moved to Paris Saint-Germain, and this season, he wore a Sevilla jersey. There were strong offers from Saudi Arabia, but Ramos rejected them, saying he wanted to play in Europe at his age.

There was another time when Ramos rejected a big transfer offer. It was in 2015. Ramos was 29 years old. He was in the prime of his career, and English Premier League (EPL) giants Manchester United were in the market for him. They were very close to signing him. But Ramos rejected the offer. Here’s why.

Ramos told the UK’s Mirror why he rejected United. There are two main reasons. First, his love and trust for Real Madrid. The second was a concern about adjusting to the EPL. Even for the best players in the world, the EPL is a difficult league.

“In 2015, I was actually very close to joining Manchester United,” Ramos says. But it didn’t happen. I wanted to stay at 토토 Real Madrid. I had ambition and passion for Real Madrid, and I wanted to keep it. Being at Real Madrid is a joy for me,” he said.

On the second reason, he said, “The EPL and United were different leagues, teams, and players compared to the ones I’ve played in, the rhythm of the game, the pace, etc. The EPL is a league where you have to learn more, and you have to prepare a lot to play.”