Sergio Ramos: The Numbers and Facts behind Ramos' Spain career

An era in Spanish international football has ended with the retirement of their talismanic defender Sergio Ramos.

The 36-year-old announced his permanent leave from Spain duties on Thursday (February 23), thus ending his 16 years of association with international football.

Here are some of the interesting facts and stats about Sergio Ramos and his international career-

When did Sergio Ramos make his international debut?

Sergio Ramos made his international debut on March 26, 2005 against China in an international friendly match. He came on as a substitute in the game and Spain won 3-0 against the Asian country.

He made his debut at the age of 18 years 11 months and 24 days.

Sergio Ramos Spain Stats:

Sergio Ramos has made 180 appearances for Spain, and has scored 23 goals. His goalscoring average per game is 0.13, which is pretty impressive for a centre-back.

Sergio Ramos First Goal for Spain:

Sergio Ramos scored his first goal for Spain against San Marino in 2005. He actually scored a brace in the match as Spain won 6-0 in a European World Cup Qualifiers match.

Sergio Ramos Last Goal for Spain:

Sergio Ramos scored his last goal for Spain against Ukraine in 2020. And incidentally, he finished with a brace again in his last scoring match. Spain won 4-0 in that Nations League group game.

Sergio Ramos International Games by Competitions:

Sergio Ramos has played 40 matches in the major tournaments and has failed either to score a goal or assist one.

Sergio Ramos Career Facts:

• Sergio Ramos is the player with the most appearances for Spain with 180 caps to his name. Former Spain international Iker Casillas (167) is second behind him, followed by another former Spanish international Sergio Busquets (143).
• Sergio Ramos is the joint 9th-highest goal-scorer for his country with 23 goals. Former Spain striker David Villa (59 goals) has scored the most goals for Spain.
• Sergio Ramos also holds the record for being the most carded player in the history of the Spanish national team, with 24 yellow cards to his name.

The Story behind the no. 15 Shirt:

Despite wearing the iconic no. 4 shirt at his club Real Madrid, Sergio Ramos has donned the no. 15 shirt while playing for Spain. And Ramos revealed that he wears that shirt in the memory of his close friend and former Sevilla teammate Puerta. Puerta lost his life in August 2007 and made his Spani debut wearing no. 15.

Sergio Ramos Achievements:

Sergio Ramos has been a fantastic servant to his country. And during his international career, the legendary defender has won 3 major titles with Spain. He won the EUROs in 2008 and 2012, while also winning the FIFA World Cup in 2010.