Sergio Ramos says he has “four or five more years” left at a high level despite struggling for game time since his move to Paris Saint-German.
The 36-year-old has endured an injury-hit first campaign in the French capital, playing 392 minutes across his seven appearances in all competitions, just four of which were starts.
However, the former Real Madrid defender impressed on his return to the line-up in PSG’s 6-1 thrashing of Clermont last time out, as Neymar and Kylian Mbappe each netted hat-tricks and Lionel Messi claimed three assists.
Ramos completed 99 of his 105 attempted passes – both of which were game highs – during the Ligue 1 leaders’ dominant win.
The defender now says he believes he can play at the highest level into his forties, insisting he feels back to his physical best.
“I see myself playing four or five more years at a high level, and then [I’ll have] another experience,” Ramos told Amazon Prime Video in France.
“Here in Paris, I have two more years [on my contract], I’ll try to make it three, [with] one more, we’ll see.
“As long as my physique holds up, I think my head is very focused. Now, I’m very well, very happy and eager to play.”
Ramos’ excellent distribution from the back contributed to PSG completing 93.6 per cent of their passes against Clermont, the highest percentage managed by any Ligue 1 team since Opta began recording such data in the 2006-07 season.
Meanwhile, Ramos refused to say whether he preferred international football to the club game, having won an incredible 180 caps for Spain during a glittering career that has seen him win one World Cup and two European Championships.
He never formally retired from international duty despite being left out of Luis Enrique’s squad for Euro 2020 and could yet look to fight his way back into the coach’s plans for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
“It’s a difficult question to answer,” Ramos added. “The feeling of your homeland and your country is always something very big. [The feeling] that your team is to whom you owe yourself, [that] you have to play well in your [club] team to be selected.
“They are both a unique feeling, I can’t keep [only] one, although with the national team you can aspire to be a world champion.”
PSG have a 12-point lead over second-placed Marseille in Ligue 1, and Mauricio Pochettino’s team can take a huge step towards securing the French title when they face their nearest rivals on Sunday.
