During Thursday’s draw for the Champions League group stage, Sergio Ramos was announced as the best defender over the past year, taking home the coveted UEFA award.
Ramos must be used to this by now, but the controversial defender has picked up another award, after captaining Real Madrid to their third consecutive Champions League title and their fourth in the past five years.
? 2017/18 #UCL Defender of the Season!
⭐️ Sergio Ramos ???#UEFAawards #UCLdraw pic.twitter.com/N5958BsJlo
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 30, 2018
The former Sevilla man played 11 of Real Madrid’s 13 matches in the Champions league, and was the undisputed leader in the dressing room for Zinedine Zidane’s side.
His importance to the side was underlined in the knockout stages, where Juventus almost acheived the unthinkable against Real Madrid before a late penalty, all in Ramos’ abesence.
He scored once in the competition, in the opening match against APOEL Nicosia, but his importance elsewhere cannot be understated. He also played a key role in the final, although only he will know what happened between him and Mo Salah.
Navas wins Best Goalkeeper
The Real Madrid goalkeeper helped his side win their third consecutive Champions League, and the fourth in five years.
Navas was decisive in the final rounds of the competition, keeping ‘Los Blancos’ ahead on a number of occasions. The 31-year-old is still going strong, and remains at the peak of his career.
After arriving at Real Madrid in the summer of 2014, Navas had to fight for a starting position with Casillas. A feet that he would achieve the following year. Since then, he has become irreplaceable in the Real defence.