Ramos Rubbishes Ronaldo Beef

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos says he and Cristiano Ronaldo can have different opinions but they remain great friends who are “rowing in the same direction.”

Recent weeks have seen Ramos and Ronaldo on opposite sides of a debate around the Bernabeu over whether the squad has been weakened by the summer departures of squad players James Rodriguez, Alvaro Morata and Pepe, with youngsters Dani Ceballos, Borja Mayoral and Jesus Vallejo having taken their place.

Speaking after Madrid’s 3-1 Champions League defeat at Tottenham in November, Ronaldo suggested the squad’s talented youngsters were not yet ready to step up, with Ramos later saying people making such public comments were being opportunistic.

The issue has continued to drag on, with all the substitutes used by Zidane so far this term contributing only three goals between them, and two of those coming from usual starters Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo. Marca has highlighted that Morata alone had scored four goals as a substitute at this stage last season.

Speaking on TV Espana, Ramos said: “Nothing happened between Cris and I. We’ve always been great friends. We both have a lot of character, and different opinions, but we are growing in the same direction.”