Former Real Madrid player Alvaro Benito feels Sergio Ramos' farewell marks the end of an era.

Ramos held a farewell media conference at Valdebebas after it was confirmed his 16-year stay would come to an end this month.

Benito said, "It is a sad day for Real Madrid and surely, the situation should have been redirected. It does not matter one year or two.

"In the end, next year you struggle and you are looking for a way out. Or you sign one, you leave and you have another year. With Cristiano I said that whoever came, no one would be Cristiano Ronaldo. With Ramos I say the same.

"(David) Alaba is very far from Sergio Ramos. Alaba, in my opinion, is not a player with central conditions, he is not his best position. Militao and Nacho make them at least have uncertainty.

"A Ramos-Varane couple is a certainty. It has a seal of quality. With Nacho, Militao and Alaba you have reasons to be optimistic, but not certainty. Without Cristiano, (Zinedine) Zidane and Ramos, it is the end of an era at Real Madrid."