Real Madrid Should Look To Lock This Player Up

• Real Madrid currently holds a slight lead over FC Barcelona for the lead in La Liga.

• Sergio Ramos is playing on an expiring contract. The star has played for the club for 15-straight years, making a contract extension more important.

• Real Madrid are major favorites to finish the season in first place at -2000.

The Long-Lasting Tenure

Real Madrid is currently focused in winning the 2019-2020 Liga title, as Los Blancos own a four-point lead over FC Barcelona with only four matches left on the schedule. However, there is another pressing matter when it comes to the team’s short-term -- and perhaps long-term -- future. It’s the elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about.

We’re talking about the potential contract extension of Sergio Ramos. The Spain international and club legend will see his contract expire at the end of the 2020-2021 campaign, meaning he has less than 12 months on his current deal. He is 34-years-old and will be 35 once his contract expires, so it’s worth questioning whether Madrid should give him a new deal, or let him leave as a free agent.

One would think there’s no easy answer, except there is. Los Merengues shouldn’t wait too much to offer Ramos a new deal, and they should definitely extend him. After all, Ramos only has a few years left before he retires. What better way to spend them than playing for Real Madrid, the club he has defended since he joined from Sevilla back in 2005. Yes, you read that right. Ramos has spent the last 15 years of his life playing for the Santiago Bernabeu outfit.

Ramos is not getting any younger and it’s clear his best years are already behind him. However, that doesn’t mean he is no longer useful. He is the club captain, the designated penalty taker, and the undisputed leader of the team since Iker Casillas and Cristiano Ronaldo left in recent years. When Ramos talks, everybody in Madrid listens. That’s not something to treat lightly.

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Can The Club Move On Without Him?

It’s not like Real Madrid has capable options to replace Ramos right away, either. Nacho Fernandez and Eder Militao can be serviceable options, but both are better slated to be Ramos' (or Raphael Varane) backups, rather than jumping into a full-time starter role. That might be the case for Militao in the future, but he is clearly not ready for that responsibility, at least not yet.

So far, neither Ramos nor Real Madrid have tried to make a big deal of the fact that no extension agreement has been reached. It’s likely that both parties will sit down and talk once the league ends, as the focus right now is to win La Liga and turn around the UEFA Champions League draw against Manchester City. Still, these two parties need to talk soon. If no agreement can be reached, then Madrid would have to explore the possibility of parting ways with Ramos before the end of the transfer period. 

You can bet several top teams will try to sign Ramos if he becomes available despite his age. His intangibles are extremely valuable and he shouldn't be treated as just another aging player. He is much more than that and his resume speaks for itself.

Having said that, no team should value his intangibles more than Real Madrid. Therefore, signing Ramos to an extension must be the club’s priority once the current season ends. Both parties need each other too much to let things end on a sour note.

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