Sergio Ramos joins prolific goalscoring defenders club after fruitful season with Real Madrid and Spain

Take a look at our list of some of the highest scoring defenders over the years from Ronald Koeman to Roberto Carlos

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  Sergio Ramos: The Real Madrid defender now has 20 international goals from 165 caps for Spain. Getty Images

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  Ronald Koeman: Sweeper, libero, deep lying midfielder? Whatever position he played he was always a goal threat and the Dutchman’s numbers are extraordinary. He reached double figures in all of his six seasons at Barcelona in the 1990s and struck 26 in 1987/88 for PSV Eindoven. Retired with 253 goals in 763 games – and who can forget that free-kick against England in the dramatic 1994 World Cup qualifier? Or the blockbuster European Cup-winning set piece against Sampdoria at Wembley in 1992? Getty Images

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  Laurent Blanc: Eighty goals in 263 games is a record many strikers would be pleased with – and that was the Frenchman’s record at first club Montpellier as he started further forward before moving back to defence. Blanc also managed 13 in a season at Marseille, but notched just once in a solitary season at Barcelona. His 16 goals in international football took him to a career total of 153. Getty Images

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  Fernando Hierro: The Spaniard could do it all – defend, pass and score. And he did, often, during a spectacular career at Real Madrid. He scored 26 in the 1991/92 season during his peak before the goals slowly reduced each year until he left Madrid in 2003. He was the heartbeat of many great teams at the Bernabeu and also netted 29 goals for Spain to total 163 in his career. Getty Images

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  Graham Alexander: A penalty expert who liked a straight run up and a punt down the middle of the goal. The Scotland international played just a single season in the Premier League with Burnley but scored seven times. He was occasionally deployed in midfield, but made a name for himself as a right-back in England’s lower divisions and scored 130 goals before retiring in 2012. Getty Images

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  Roberto Carlos: His thunderous left foot struck fear into the hearts of anyone standing in the wall when he was lining up a free kick. His bending effort with the outside of his left peg against France in 1997 is the most memorable, but he could also score from open play as well, including a swerving effort from the touchline, which shocked everyone in the stadium, in a Real Madrid match against Tenerife in 1998. He finished with 113 career goals with 11 for Brazil and 67 for Real. Getty Images

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  Sinisa Mihajlovic: The Serbian had a fantastic left foot, which he made the most of during a career mostly spent in Serie A with Roma, Sampdoria, Lazio and Inter Milan. He scored a hat-trick of free kicks in a match against Sampdoria for Lazio and finished his career in 2006 with 106 career goals. Getty Images

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  Daniel Passarella: The defender’s goalscoring record wasn’t far off Diego Maradona's as he plundered 90 for River Plate in eight seasons between 1974 and 1981 and continued at around one every four matches in Serie A for Fiorentina. Also bagged 22 for Argentina. Steve Powell / Allsport

Sergio Ramos is a prolific footballer in many ways.

There's the more than 600 matches he has played for Real Madrid; the 165 international appearances for Spain, second only to Iker Casillas.

Then there's the lengthy honours list which includes four Champions League titles and four La Liga titles.

One he might rather forget is the 25 red cards.

Then there's another unusual statistic for which he should be celebrated - and that's the remarkable number of goals he has scored, as a defender.

On the spot against Sweden

Ramos clocked up his 20th international goal for Spain from the penalty spot against Sweden on Monday evening, taking him joint-11th on his country's all time goalscorers list.

He won't reach leader David Villa, who is way out in front on 59, but the 33-year-old Ramos could break into the top 10 if he continues to play for a few more years, with Michel (21 goals), and Julio Salinas (22) just in front of him.

He could have equalled Michel's mark in the Sweden match when Spain were awarded another penalty, but Ramos insisted striker Alvaro Morata took it after he had been fouled.

"I did not even ask him [about the penalty] because Sergio always wants to put all the possible goals,” Morata said. “But he has made an incredible gesture. I thank him and he knows what I think of him."

It was a disappointing season for Real Madrid, finishing third in the league, 19 points behind Barcelona, and failing to win any silverware except the Club World Cup.

They struggled without the prolific Cristiano Ronaldo, but Ramos chipped in with 11 goals in all competitions to go with the four he scored in 2018 and three in 2019 for Spain.

It was the second time in his club career that he had reached double figures in a single season, and he stands on 109 career goals - an impressive figure for a defender.

He has a long way to go to catch Koeman ...

Will Dutchman Ronald Koeman ever be caught as the highest scoring defender with more than 250 goals?

He was more versatile than Ramos, pushing forward into midfield, but Ramos should continue to score goals, especially if he keeps penalty-taking duties; he converted 11 during the season just gone.

He's not quite the top scoring international defender, however. That title goes to the Argentine Daniel Passarella, who scored 22, while Koeman netted 14 for the Netherlands.