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          Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos joins top-scoring defenders across Europe's top leagues and clubs

          • Chris Wright, Toe Poke writerJun 23, 2020, 12:47 PM

          Sergio Ramos broke new ground on Sunday when he scored the opening goal in Real Madrid's 2-1 win at Real Sociedad.

          By converting from the penalty spot five minutes after half-time, Ramos officially went out in front as the highest-scoring defender in the entire 91-year history of La Liga, with 68 career league goals to his name.

          The veteran centre-back's seventh goal of the season saw him move him one goal ahead of Barcelona legend Ronald Koeman in the all-time list, breaking a record set by the Dutchman back in 1995.

          However, Koeman's tally still stands a single-club record for the time being, as only 66 of Ramos' goals have come for Real, with the first two dating from his early days at Sevilla.

          Fernando Hierro scored 105 league goals for Real during his long and distinguished career, but only 51 came while playing at the back rather than in midfield.

          Ramos now joins some incredibly esteemed names as one of the highest-scoring defenders across Europe's top five leagues and the continent's biggest clubs.

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          LEAGUES

          Premier League: John Terry (41)

          Chelsea stalwart John Terry is the top-scoring defender in Premier League history with 41 goals -- mostly a mix of towering and/or thumping headers but with the odd deft scissor volley thrown in for good measure.

          Ashley Young has actually scored more Premier League goals than Terry (48) but the former Watford, Aston Villa and Manchester United man only became a full-back later in his career, having spent the majority of his early career out on the wing.

          Serie A: Giacinto Facchetti (59)

          The Italian top-flight record belongs to Giacinto Facchetti, the legendary flying left-back and scorer of 59 goals for the fabled "Grande" Inter Milan side of the 1960s.

          Jose Osvaldo Curti, often deployed as a defender, scored 64 goals for four Serie A clubs (including Sampdoria and Torino) during the 1950s. However, the Argentine is remembered as a midfielder first and foremost.

          Ligue 1: Laurent Blanc (44)

          One of Les Bleus' all-time greats, Blanc is the highest-scoring defender in both the history of the France national team (16 goals) and the French top division (44 goals).

          The cultured centre-half found the net for all five of his Ligue 1 clubs, including Montpellier, Nimes, Saint-Etienne, Auxerre and Marseille.

          Blanc also played as a midfielder during his career in France and scored goals from further up the pitch, but his tally for strikes in his principal guise as a defender are enough to see him top that list in Ligue 1.

          Bundesliga: Manfred Kaltz (76)

          Duisburg sweeper Bernard Dietz and Hamburg right-back Kaltz, who both scored 76 goals apiece during their respective careers during the late 1970s and 80s. However, seven of Dietz's goals came while playing as a forward early in his career so Kaltz -- who scored a Bundesliga record 53 penalties during his career -- gets the nod here.

          CLUBS (domestic league goals only)

          Arsenal: Laurent Koscielny (22)

          Fairly prolific and adept in front of goal for a centre-half, Koscielny's 22 league goals for Arsenal earned him a classy farewell from the Gunners when he left last year. It was certainly a lot classier than the way in which Bordeaux announced they had signed the defender.

          Barcelona: Ronald Koeman (67)

          No defender has scored more league goals for Barcelona than Koeman, who made quite the habit of powering home long-range belters during his playing days.

          Bayern Munich: Klaus Augenthaler (52) (Beckenbauer 44)

          You may assume Franz Beckenbauer is Bayern's top-scoring defender, but in fact the honour goes to Augenthaler, who scored 52 league goals from the back for the Bavarians (including one from inside the centre circle). That is six more than "Der Kaiser," whose overall tally of 60 was boosted by his appearances in midfield.

          Borussia Dortmund: Reinhold Wosab (60)

          A faithful servant for Dortmund having spent 10 season with the club between 1962 and 1971, versatile full-back Wosab also contributed 60 league goals to the cause.

          Juventus: Antonio Cabrini (34)

          The Bianconeri's highest-scoring defender is Cabrini, their trusty left-back who scored 34 times in Serie A throughout the late 1970s and 1980s including a famous last-minute winner against local rivals Torino in 1979.

          Liverpool: Sami Hyypia (22)

          Rock-solid and routinely underrated, Hyypia opened his Liverpool account against Manchester United and went on to pitch in with more Premier League goals for the Reds than any other defender.

          Manchester United: Denis Irwin (18)

          From the 1992-93 season onwards, the defender to have found the back of the net most regularly in the league for Manchester United is Irish dead-ball specialist Irwin.

          Steve Bruce scored 36 league goals for United, but many of them came before the Premier League was founded in 1992 and therefore basically never happened.

          Manchester City: Vincent Kompany (18)

          It's perhaps fitting that the heroic captain who lifted City's first Premier League title is also the club's highest-scoring defender, with his last effort for the club particularly special.

          Paris Saint-Germain: Marquinhos (14)

          A comparatively young club, having only been formed in the mid-1970s, it's perhaps unsurprising that PSG's highest-scoring defender is Marquinhos, a member of the current squad.

          Tottenham Hotspur: Sol Campbell, Ledley King (10)

          Two players can claim to be Tottenham's highest-scoring defenders in the Premier League, as Campbell and King both reached double figures at White Hart Lane. In 2000, King scored what was, for a time, the quickest goal ever scored in the competition.