Why Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane Is Real Madrid's Best Centre-Back Pairing
Marca once described them as the "perfect couple," a duo that formed a "backbone."
Alone, they were just a Spaniard and a Portuguese; the owner of flowing locks (back then) and the owner a shaved head; No. 4 and No. 3; an all-action cheetah and a feisty bull. Together, though, they were something else. Together, their contrasting traits were complementary, and ferocity united them.
Together, said Marca, they made "life hell" for opponents.
It's now eight years since Sergio Ramos and Pepe first became Real Madrid team-mates following the latter's arrival from Porto in 2007. In that time, the pair have formed one of the longest-running defensive partnerships in the club's history, standing alongside each other in white on more than 200 occasions. When Pepe this summer extended his contract with the club until 2017, Marca celebrated an alliance that could eventually span a decade.
But will it?
For Ramos, there are no doubts; his status at the Bernabeu is unquestioned. A 10-year servant, a winner of everything at Real Madrid, a World Cup and European champion at international level, the Spaniard has stood at or near the summit of the continent's defensive pile for some time now. And at Real Madrid, his significance goes beyond collected honours.
Indeed, Ramos has come to embody the essence or traditional identity of his club more than any of his current team-mates. The captain is a leader by both title and example, a sort of standard-bearer. The Andalusian, through his character, is Real Madrid; it's that he-never-knows-he's-beaten streak that defines him.
Ramos is also entering a fruitful time for an elite defender. At 29, physically he remains exceptional, able to compete with the game's finest on a purely athletic level. But whereas his play was once underpinned by such a quality alone, he's now at the age where accrued percipience rounds him.
In short, Ramos is at the point where the body remains sharp but the mind is now calm. A defender's sweet spot.
Thus, it becomes a matter of whom he will partner. A battle between Pepe and Raphael Varane.
During the summer, when Marca ran the headline, "Varane prepped for step up," the timing felt natural for the Frenchman but also cruel on Pepe—the man Varane would step past. In 2014-15, the Portuguese put together one of his best seasons since moving to the Spanish capital, curtailing the volatility that once plagued him and building his game around a certain poise rather than punch.
As an individual, he's probably a better defender now than he ever has been. But football isn't an individual game; it's about the way a player mixes with those around him. And the problem for Pepe is he's competing with a player who changes for the better the dynamic of the entire team.
For Varane, it's now time for us to stop referring to him as an emerging talent—he's now beyond such a tag. He's already more than that. He's ready.
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As recently as September, when Real Madrid drew with Malaga, there was a trio of passages that went by largely unnoticed in a scoreless draw, but they were passages that neatly encapsulated exactly what Varane enables a team to do.
In the second half that afternoon, Madrid were pouring forward to lay siege on the Malaga goal. With the visitors sitting tight and deep, both Marcelo and Daniel Carvajal functioned as genuine wingers, Real were without a recognised holding midfielder and space was abundant in the Real Madrid half. Essentially, it was the recipe for conceding a goal on the break. But they didn't.
On three occasions after Malaga won the ball, Juanpi charged toward the Real Madrid goal, the threat very real. But all three times, the runs amounted to nothing. Not one chance. Not one shot. On each occasion, Juanpi looked up and just stopped, killing the move. In his way: Varane.
Within the 90 minutes, these were tiny details, but they were extraordinarily significant. Juanpi didn't even bother trying to take Varane on; he knew he couldn't win.
Just think of liberties such a quality affords a team.
Repeatedly, the football community marvels at the effect of athleticism and searing pace on defenders. When presented with forwards carrying such a trait, those at the back grow anxious, the threat to them multi-dimensional. So often we see raw pace scrambling minds and fracturing systems, but rarely do we consider what such a quality does in reverse.
Varane, though, shows us.
What the Frenchman now does for Real Madrid is embolden the rest of the team. Because of his transonic speed (remember that sprint at the Vicente Calderon last season?), all those around him have a greater licence, their margin for error larger and the effect of their mistakes minimised.
Thanks to his recovery abilities, Varane allows the defensive line to play higher. He allows the full-backs to push on. He allows his partner to gamble. He allows the midfield to play flat out. Essentially, he gives his team more options and liberties because his athleticism allows him to cover territory in a way other players can't.
Thus, Varane changes the whole dynamic of a game. Simply through his presence, he positively alters what's possible for his team while concurrently reducing the options available to the opposition. Think about it: Even when sitting deep, Juanpi and Malaga couldn't even counter-attack.
It's not just pace, either. The Frenchman has the rest of what's necessary too: the aerial ability, the anticipation, the awareness and the technique. But it's that speed that distinguishes him, allowing him and his team to play in a manner that's not possible without it.
Pepe, then, has done little wrong, but he just can't do what Varane can. Though individually he remains a sturdy defender, the 32-year-old can't impact those around him in the same way. He doesn't change the equation for his team-mates, bettering their odds. Varane does.
Ramos and Pepe might once have been a perfect couple, but not anymore. That's Ramos and Varane.
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