Ramos or Puyol? Who Is The Better Player?
It is a great honour to be the captain of a prestigious team and these two players are the ideal examples of a perfect captain. It does not matter if they played for rival clubs because they had a lot in common and will be remembered in the history books of Real Madrid and Barcelona. The beloved El Clasico will never be the same in their absence as they were the heart and soul of it. Sergio Ramos and Carles Puyol are two such players who would die on the pitch rather than concede a goal for their team. Two proud captains who achieved many things in their long careers.
These two defenders are undoubtedly among the best defenders in the history of Spain. They conquered Europe and the World together making their country proud. On some occasions, their relations have been bitter as they played for rival clubs. During an El Clasico Sergio Ramos slapped Puyol after getting raged on the pitch. It is one of the reasons why Ramos is still hated by Barcelona fans and he has given them many reasons for the future.
The question that is asked repeatedly by football pundits and media is that who is the better player between Ramos and Puyol? Let’s find out.
1: Personal Stats
Carles Puyol started his professional career with the senior team in 1999, he played for the Blaugrana for 15 years and retired like a legend in Camp Nou. Ramos joined much later in 2005 from Sevilla and quickly managed his boots in the new team. He played for 16 years in the Santiago Bernabeu and then moved to PSG. The two players had spent a long time of their career in La Liga and so it is an important criterion to compare them.
| Overall | Ramos | Puyol |
| Matches | 774 | 682 |
| Goals | 110 | 25 |
| Assists | 41 | 14 |
When it comes to scoring goals there are very few defenders who can defeat Sergio Ramos. He has exceptional aerial abilities and is consistent in goalscoring. Meanwhile, Puyol is more of a traditional defender who has class and defensive abilities that are better used in defending goals and not scoring.
In terms of personal stats, Ramos gives Puyol the edge as he is a warrior on the field who strives aggressively while Puyol is more like a well-mannered commander who strategically uses his position for victory.
2: Titles
It is one of the biggest achievements for a defender to win titles as they usually do not win individual awards. Both these players have won plenty of titles during their glorious careers making them the best of the best.
Ramos has won 24 major titles in his career more than Puyol. Most of the titles he won were with Real Madrid in La Liga but recently he has added more trophies to this list. He has won the Champions League for 4 times and many other prestigious awards during his career. The partnership of Pepe and Ramos is considered to be one of the deadliest in the history of La Liga.
The Barcelona captain Carles Puyol also had his fair share of victories with the team and he won 21 titles with Barcelona. Puyol came in at a time when Barcelona was constructed to be the most feared team in the world. There was complete dominance by Barcelona in the whole world during this era. It is also the reason why he has 6 La Liga titles which is 1 more than Sergio Ramos.
| Ramos | Puyol | |
| La Liga | 5 | 6 |
| Ligue 1 | 2 | N/A |
| Champions League | 4 | 3 |
| UEFA Supercup | 3 | 2 |
| French Supercup | 1 | N/A |
| Spanish Supercup | 4 | 6 |
| FIFA CWC | 2 | 4 |
| Others | 2 | 0 |
Despite the tough competition in this category, it is understandable that Ramos is the winner.
3: Individual Achievements
A player is considered to be great based on the heroics he shows on the pitch. The players like Puyol and Ramos can die for their team and that has earned them individual honours and respect from fans all around the world.
Some moments from the careers of these two players are magical and will go down as the greatest moments in their club history. The magnificent goal scored by Sergio Ramos in the Champions League final at 93:48 is irreplaceable.
The list of individual awards for these two is long. However, the amount of honours won by Sergio Ramos is too long for any defender to overtake.
The player is certainly the best in terms of getting great performances as he is better in front of the goal. Only strikers are used to having such a long list of achievements but Ramos is made different and has more international goals than many great strikers. Only Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi have more appearances (11) than Ramos (10) in the FIFPro World 11.
There is no competition for Ramos in this category.
4: Personal Life
The fans of Sergio Ramos can follow him on his social media handles to see what is going on with their hero, he posts frequently so his fans do not have to wait for his updates. Ramos is a happy man who is enjoying his career in PSG and has a lovely family with 4 children and a beautiful wife.
Puyol is enjoying his retirement days and also posts about his whereabouts on his social media handle. He has 2 lovely daughters and a beautiful wife.
Who is the better player?
Puyol is a great defender who had great tackling abilities that are much better than Ramos. Many strikers used to fear him as he was fearless to go into any situation to stop a goal. Baresi once said: “Carles Puyol puts his face where other defenders wouldn’t put their foot.” The fans of Barcelona know the true value and greatness of Carles Puyol who gave his whole life to FC Barcelona.
Despite not being better than Puyol at tackling and class Ramos is much ahead of him in many other areas. In terms of speed, goals and heading Ramos is better than him and many defenders out there. He has conquered the world and will always be a legend in the history of football.
All the above statistics suggest that Ramos is ahead of Puyol. The Barcelona captain Puyol is a great defender while Ramos is a great defender, goalscorer and a great leader.
