'Snubbed' Ramos Announces Retirement From Spain Duty
Sergio Ramos has announced his retirement from international football after he was told he will no longer be considered for selection.
Ramos has not played for Spain since March 2021 and had been overlooked for the last two international tournaments at EURO 2020 and the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.
[Ramos had been hoping for a recall after new manager Luis de la Fuente took over from Luis Enrique after the World Cup.
But the 36-year-old Paris Saint Germain defender will have to focus on his club football.
Ramos is Spain's most capped player with 180 international appearances.
The former Real Madrid stalwart helped Spain win the FIFA World Cup in 2010 as well as EURO 2008 and 2012.
"The time has come," Ramos posted on social media on Thursday.
"The time to say goodbye to our beloved and exciting national team.
"It's the end of a road that I hoped would stretch out further and would end with a better taste in my mouth, on a par with all the success we achieved with La Roja."
"I think that my path deserved to end because of my personal decision or if my performance was not up to the level that our national team deserve, but not because of age or other reasons," he said.
"Being young or less young is not a virtue or a defect, it is only a temporary trait that is not necessarily related to performance or ability.
"I look with admiration and envy at [Luka] Modric, [Lionel] Messi, Pepe... the essence, tradition, values, meritocracy and justice in football.
"Unfortunately, it will not happen to me because football is not always fair and football is never only about football."
