5 players who were astonished by Cristiano Ronaldo and his training methods
Cristiano Ronaldo first burst onto the scene as a talented teenager when Sporting Lisbon faced Manchester United in a friendly in 2003. What followed was an exciting transfer as Sir Alex Ferguson brought the Portuguese to England. Since then, the man from Madeira has not looked back for once and has gone on to become a modern legend of the game.
Over nearly two decades, Cristiano Ronaldo has been a serial trophy winner wherever he has gone. The explosive forward initially started on the left wing and then shifted to the central position to become a goal machine. He even inspired the Portuguese national side to lift the Euros in 2016.
Despite being 36, Cristiano Ronaldo has shown no signs of stopping. He has his work cut out this season to help Manchester United return to their glory days.
Cristiano Ronaldo's training sets him aside from others
While many attacking footballers have slowed down significantly after turning 30, it has not been the case with Cristiano Ronaldo. Signs of age may have started showing, and Ronaldo may have had to adjust. However, Cristiano Ronaldo's impeccable training regime and health consciousness have helped him preserve a lot of abilities from his younger days.
The training routines have helped him upkeep his dominance. He has also shocked and astonished many of his teammates in the past throughout his playing days with his training methods.
Let's take a look at five of them:
#5 Arthur Melo
Arthur has been teammates of arguably the two finest specimens of modern football, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, unlike anyone else on this list. While there is no denying the Argentine's magic when it comes to football, Cristiano Ronaldo left a lasting impression on the Brazilian's mind.
Arthur Melo on Cristiano Ronaldo! https://t.co/zr9y6PLSzA
Speaking to Desimpedidos, Arthur claimed how Cristiano Ronaldo was more expressive in the dressing room. The Brazilian was also left in awe after seeing Cristiano's training routines. He said:
"He trains like an animal, he doesn't know when to rest and he encourages you to give your all."
Arthur was awestruck by the training routine. He also expressed disbelief at the amount of self-restraint Cristiano Ronaldo has had while maintaining his own diet as well. He added:
"He always tells me what to eat, not leaving anything to chance."
#4 Blaise Matuidi
In 2018, Cristiano Ronaldo decided to test new waters after a glittering spell with Real Madrid and made the switch to Italian club Juventus. While it's easy for a player of his stature to inspire youngsters, senior pros like Blaise Matuidi have also taken inspiration from him.
People shouldn't forget how decorated a footballer Matuidi has been himself. Yet the Frenchman was all praise for the Portuguese when the latter joined his club post the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
🗣️"Cristiano Ronaldo is the best player on the planet, knowing that he will play with us is great news-especially for him as he gets to share a locker room with a world champion!"
-Blaise Matuidi on Ronaldo joining Juventus😂 https://t.co/OgKPmD2ett
There has never been any doubt about Cristiano Ronaldo's abilities and it was once again vouched for by Matuidi. Additionally, the French midfielder was astonished by Cristiano Ronaldo's efforts on the training ground. Speaking to Telefoot, Matuidi called Cristiano Ronaldo 'a monster' at training. He said:
"At work, he's a monster. He arrives first and leaves last. He's working, he's working ... I've never seen that and I understand better now why he's won the Ballon d'Or five times."
Matuidi also told L'Equipe how Cristiano would want to win everything, even if it was on the training ground. He added:
“Not him! He always wants to go higher. In training he always wants to win everything, he is not happy when he loses and I want to ensure you that it is not fake.”