5 controversial quotes on Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the greatest players to have ever stepped on a football pitch. Since making his senior debut in the 2002-03 season for Sporting Lisbon, the Portuguese has gone from strength to strength and broken record after record.
Ronaldo is Real Madrid's record goalscorer with 450 goals in just 438 matches for Los Blancos. He is also tied with Ali Daei on 109 international goals, the most by any player in the history of international football. Overall, Ronaldo has scored 783 goals in a glittering club career that has seen him win numerous honors with club and country.
As with any player who reaches the pinnacle of success in the way the 36-year-old has, there have been several controversial quotes on Cristiano Ronaldo. These have come from critics, fellow footballers and even teammates.
Here, we look at five of the most controversial quotes about Cristiano Ronaldo that have come out in recent times.
#5 "He can't walk past his reflection without admiring it, even if we're about to play a game of football”
During the early 2000s, few attacking duos struck fear into opposition hearts like Manchester United's Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo. The pair often sliced open defenses with their swift counterattacks and won numerous trophies together.
Rooney has observed Ronaldo from very close quarters at United. In his book My Decade in the Premier League, he pointed towards Ronaldo's vanity when it came to his looks:
"There was a mirror by Ronaldo's seat in the Old Trafford dressing room," said Rooney. "In the time I've been playing with Ronnie, the one thing I've noticed about him is that he can't walk past his reflection without admiring it, even if we're about to play a game of football."
Rooney also added that Ronaldo followed a ritual before the team went out for a warm-up ahead of games. The Portuguese winger would wear his kit, strap on his boots and then look into the mirror to "psych himself up," before heading out onto the pitch.
#4 "Juventus have done worse with Cristiano Ronaldo than before"
Former Italian footballer Antonio Cassano is yet another critic of Ronaldo's time at Juventus, as he said earlier this year that he feels the Bianconeri have gotten worse since the 36-year-old joined the club. Apart from failing to win the Champions League in his three seasons at Juve, Ronaldo also saw his club give up the Serie A title to Inter Milan in the 2020-21 season.
Cassano said:
"Juventus signed him (Ronaldo) to win the Champions League, but they've done worse with him than they've done before. They'd also won the Serie A title without him. I think he's been a failure."
It is worth noting that Juventus themselves have been in a transitionary period since Ronaldo's arrival. The club have dabbled with different managers and playing styles and have also been largely poor in the transfer market following the purchase of the Portuguese superstar. Resultantly, it is difficult to blame Ronaldo alone for Bianconeri's recent failures.
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