5 reasons why Sergio Ramos is not as good as he is made out to be

#1 Stats don’t lie

Madrid are better defensively without him

Someone wise once said something along the lines of ‘stats are like undergarments, they reveal a lot of things but hide the most important parts.’ This is a very true and correct analogy but it might just be a little incomplete.

Because while stats might hide the most important parts, it does give an indication of how those parts could be like.

In the context of Sergio Ramos, there are some simple stats that tell us a lot. Last season, Ramos missed 12 league games and Madrid conceded 13 times in those games (1.08 goals-per-game). With him, however, the Blancos conceded 31 in 26 games (1.2 goals-per-game).

In the season prior, Madrid was without Ramos for 10 league games and conceded only six times in his absence (0.6 goals-per-game). In his presence, however, the Galacticos let in 35 goals from 28 games (1.25 goals-per-game).

So, statistically, Madrid do better in defence when Ramos doesn’t play – and that is no surprise at all.

What Dejan Lovren is doing now stems from nothing but pure jealousy. After all, when it comes to being decorated, the Croat is not even fit to lace the Spaniard’s boot.

However, a part of what Lovren claims is absolutely true. Ramos makes a lot of mistakes and is not as good as many make him out to be.

The most frustrating part is that he does have the potential to be the best – that becomes apparent when he plays against the big sides and is at the top of his game; he is simply unbeatable in those situations – but his inconsistency and erratic nature make him more of a liability.