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Sergio Ramos is set to leave Real Madrid after 16 years

Princess Tarfa

Sergio Ramos, Real Madrid's long-serving captain, will leave the club after a 16-year tenure in which he won 22 titles, the club said on Wednesday, according to Reuters.

Ramos, 35, ran down his agreement and, according to the Spanish daily Marca, was unable to reach a deal on a renewal after Real offered him a one-year term with a 10% salary drop, which he turned down.

Ramos joined Real Madrid from Sevilla in 2005 for a price of 27 million euros, a record at the time for a Spanish defender.

Ramos was named captain in 2015 with the exit of goalkeeper Iker Casillas, having participating in 671 games and scoring 101 goals.

His leaving is significant symbolically. Ramos has always been at the helm of Europe's current continuous success under Zinedine Zidane for the best part of two decades.

The actuality, however, may differ slightly from the images. Ramos has grappled with fitness over the previous year, appearing in just 15 La Liga games for Real Madrid.

He was however left out of Spain's Euro 2020 team, implying that he has slipped down a level as he has become older. At 35, he may have not been worth the two-year contract he desired.

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