5 famous Portuguese players who consider Cristiano Ronaldo as their idol
While his club career is definitely a tale for the legends, Cristiano Ronaldo's journey with the Portugal national team has also been impressive in recent years. The former Real Madrid superstar recently surpassed Ali Daei as the highest scorer in men's international football, cementing his name among the world's greatest. With such a glittering professional journey, Cristiano Ronaldo was bound to attract an insurmountable amount of devotees.
Famous personalities who idolize Cristiano Ronaldo
An absolute workhorse, the goal-machine is widely popular for his unparalleled commitment to the game. Subsequently, Cristiano Ronaldo has ended up inspiring a hoard of young prodigies through his commendable work ethic. Kylian Mbappe famously named him his idol, crediting the Portuguese for his current ideology of the sport.
As much as I love Mbappe, I think Haaland has that mentality Ronaldo has. I wouldn’t be surprised if Haapand goes on to be among the 3 goalscorers of all time while Mbappe retires early. Just a take don’t get mad https://t.co/rRXJjV8ZMt
Mbappe's potential future Ballon d'Or rival Erling Haaland has also named Cristiano Ronaldo as his role model, with the Norwegian perfectly embodying his icon's ideals. Tottenham talisman Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford are some of the other elite-level players to have named the 182-capped Portugal international as their idol.
Aside from the aforementioned big names, Cristiano Ronaldo also has a plethora of admirers in his native country. In fact, his prolonged career has managed to inspire several of his Portugal teammates. Taking his invaluable impact on budding youngsters into consideration, let's take a look at five Portugal players who idolized Cristiano Ronaldo during their youth:
#5 Andre Gomes
One of the few lucky players to have played alongside both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Andre Gomes arguably had a better experience with the latter. While his stint at Barcelona was nothing short of horrific, Gomes' brief spell with the Portugal national team reaped much better results.
Andre Gomes in 2016: “I have enjoyed playing with Cristiano Ronaldo with Portugal. When I'm in the same squad as him - we get along fine. He spoke to me and congratulated me o my move to Barcelona. I'm happy he did.”
Captain. Leader. If only it was the same case at Barcelona... https://t.co/teGgOk3WVa
The former Valencia midfielder featured heavily in Portugal's fabled Euro 2016 win. Having partnered Cristiano Ronaldo on 21 occasions, Gomes had nothing but praise for his compatriot. In 2016, he was recorded saying:
"Cristiano Ronaldo is a very important player, who is always present and ready to play. He is very serious about the responsibility of leading our country, we have great spirit, and he’s a great example for all of us."
The 29-capped Portugal international is currently plying his trade at Everton, having permanently departed Barcelona in 2019.
#4 Fabio Silva
Fabio Silva caught the world's attention in 2019, when he made his professional debut at the tender age of 17 for Porto. Although Silva could only manage three goals in his debut campaign, his immense potential compelled Wolverhampton Wanderers to splash €40 million on the Portugal international the following year.
FC Porto's youngest goalscorer in their 126-year history ✅
Compared to Ronaldo when he was just 15-years-old ✅
Fabio Silva isn't just a Football Manager legend. He's a real life gem 👏 sportbible.com/football/news-…
Due to his impressive positioning skills and incredible work ethic, Silva had drawn striking comparisons to the one and only Cristiano Ronaldo. Commenting on their similarities, he said:
"For me, he [Ronaldo] is the best in the history of football, so being compared to such a legendary player. It's an amazing feeling. He is an absolute inspiration and as a young player, it's so important to have a role model like Cristiano."
The youngster has had a tough start to life in England, struggling to settle into the senior squad. However, at 19, Silva has plenty of time to catch up to his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Also read: 5 times Lionel Messi saved Argentina