Back in his training club, during the last summer transfer window, the legendary Spanish defender, Sergio Ramos decided to postpone the colors of Sevilla FC, declining some great lucrative offers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey or even the States -United. A return to the scent of nostalgia since the native of Camas in Andalusia had played two seasons in the Rojiblancos jersey between 2003 and 2005, before being transferred to Real Madrid in the summer for an amount of 27 million euros. Exactly one month after his signing in Seville, the former PSG player alternates between the very good and the less good. Failing a decisive own goal last weekend in La Liga against his long-time rival FC Barcelona (0-1), Sergio Ramos nevertheless continues to be praised internally by his coach and his teammates. His experience in the Champions League remains crucial for the Europa League title holders.
“A little helpless. A good match overall. This competition is defined by small details and we go there with this bad taste in our mouths of having taken the advantage twice. It’s an away match, a difficult opponent, against whom you have to have the ball. We’re happy to go home, with a good feeling, but if you don’t leave with three points, you don’t leave with total satisfaction. We are not the type to look for excuses but the referee (Daniele Orsato, editor’s note) was a bigger protagonist today than he should have.launched Sergio Ramos after the contested draw, before emphasizing his words in the mixed zone of the Philips Stadion: “A referee does not need to be the central protagonist and even more so with VAR. You look like an idiot. The goal is refused, the foul on the edge of the area… There are a lot of things. People will say a lot of things, but the respect for all teams is not the same, and in this case it’s up to me and we have to suffer as Sevillistas. Let’s hope that little by little, everything will become equal and respect will be the same for Madrid, for Lens or for Sevilla.
A different treatment?
But what actions is Serge Ramos talking about? Against PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday evening, during the 2nd day of Group B of the Champions League, several incidents of play were pointed out, especially as the Rojiblancos led 1-2 with less than ten minutes remaining. First, the penalty awarded to the Dutch seems to be very severe, if not non-existent. The referees signaled a foul by the former Real Madrid defender for an alleged tripping on Malik Tillman (86th). Earlier in the match, when the score was still goalless, Sevilla FC had to concede a disallowed goal from Adrià Pedrosa (53rd) for a supposed handball when controlling the ball. And finally, on PSV’s equalizing goal, signed Jordan Teze (90th + 5), the action comes from a new foul by Sergio Ramos on Luuk De Jong. Accustomed to playing big matches in clubs of a higher standard, the 37-year-old Spaniard must also get used to this new life, this different treatment depending on the jersey worn. An accumulation of misfortunes which should serve him well for the rest of the season. But Ramos nevertheless banged his fist on the table:
“These are very quick decisions, but you have VAR to check and see more clearly. The penalty, the disallowed goal against Pedrosa, there are a lot of things. In this competition, there is always a more permissive refereeing, but it seemed that today it was “Everything against us”. We have to keep learning because it’s a shame that we lost three points which were very important. Respect for all clubs is not the same and I suffer from it with Sevilla. It seemed that until the score was tied, the match would never be over.”he firmly asserted at the microphone of Movistar, Tuesday evening after the Champions League match. In any case, the love story between referees and Sergio Ramos continues at the age of 37, while the Spaniard has received 234 yellow cards and 29 suspensions during his breathtaking career.
