PSG manager Mauricio Pochettino has addressed claims from the club’s sporting director Leonardo that Sergio Ramos has been a “failure”.
Leonardo claimed this week that the arrival of the central defender had not worked out and he claimed responsibility for the deal not going according to plan.
Ramos joined the Ligue 1 side last summer as a free agent after ending his 16-year association with Real Madrid, for whom he became a captain.
Yet things have gone wrong for Ramos since making the move with suggestions that the French club could even go as far as terminating his contract.
Ramos has been involved in only five appearances for the club and only three starts with his campaign in Paris ruined by multiple injury problems.
The veteran defender has not been in a matchday squad for Mauricio Pochettino’s side since January and there had been suggestions he may not be able to play again this campaign.
The 35-year-old signed a two-year contract in the French capital last summer after ending his stay at Real Madrid, where he had been club captain.
Ramos played just four games for Real Madrid in 2021 in the six months prior to his exit, meaning he has not yet hit double figures in first-team appearances since the end of 2020.
That led PSG sporting director Leonardo to say earlier this week on the signing of Ramos: “I am not afraid to take responsibility for mistakes when I make them.”
Yet Pochettino insisted that Ramos still has a key role to play for his team this campaign and particularly against his former club.
Pochettino told a press conference on Friday: “We will see, we will assess it in the next few days.
“He is not integrated into the team, but it is clear that in a Champions League game a player like Sergio can pass on that experience and logically, having been captain and playing for 17 years at a club like Madrid, he can pass on that experience and give good advice to his teammates.
“It would be nice if he was always available for selection, but that is the same for any other players who are injured or suspended. “It is a good time for us to be all together for our run of matches.
