"Cristiano Ronaldo is the greatest player of all time" - Turkey star Burak Yilmaz heaps praise on Portuguese superstar ahead of World Cup play off clash
Turkish forward Burak Yilmaz has called Cristiano Ronaldo the greatest player of all time ahead of their World Cup Qualifier playoff against Portugal.
Despite his mutual respect for the Portuguese forward, Yilmaz is desperate to qualify for the Qatar World Cup at Ronaldo's expense. Speaking to the press ahead of their game against Portugal (via Sporx's Twitter page), Burak Yilmaz said:
"For me, Cristiano Ronaldo is the greatest player of all time in the world. I respect and love him very much. I don't know if it's his last World Cup, but I'm sure it will be my last. I want to go out on the field and do my best to help my country."
Both Portugal and Turkey finished second in their respective qualifying groups, which has seen them drop into the playoffs to qualify for the World Cup. The winner of this tie will face either Italy or North Macedonia to book a spot in this year's showpiece tournament in Qatar.
Burak Yılmaz: "Cristiano Ronaldo benim için dünyanın gelmiş geçmiş en büyük oyuncusu. Ona saygım var ve çok seviyorum. Onun son Dünya Kupası mı bilemem ama benim son dünya kupam olacağına eminim. Onun için sahaya çıkıp elimden geleni yapmak, ülkeme yardımcı olmak istiyorum."🇵🇹🇹🇷 https://t.co/ZoXEImZtYy
This could be Cristiano Ronaldo's last opportunity to win the World Cup with Portugal. The 37-year-old forward has been to the World Cup four times in his career but only finished at a high of fourth place back in 2006.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner scored six goals in the qualification group phase, including a hat-trick against Luxembourg earlier in the campaign.
However, it is worth noting that Cristiano Ronaldo is yet to score a goal against Turkey on the international stage. The Manchester United forward has faced Turkey twice in his career and is currently goalless.
Portugal have a squad capable of qualifying for the World Cup and doing well in Qatar. The likes of Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Jota, Bernardo Silva and Joao Felix are all big names who are also performing well at club level.
Cristiano Ronaldo is currently Manchester United's leading goalscorer this season
Cristiano Ronaldo comes into the semifinals of the World Cup Qualifiers on the back of some decent club form. The 37-year-old forward has scored 18 goals and provided three assists in 32 appearances for Manchester United this season.
Ronaldo is currently the the Red Devis' leading goalscorer this season. He is nine goals clear of second-placed and fellow Portuguese Bruno Fernandes.
or Macedonia 
2 possible games left for Cristiano Ronaldo in March:
vs Turkey 🇹🇷
vs Italy 🇮🇹 or Macedonia 🇲🇰 https://t.co/qS5MCsnQII
Ronaldo is the leading goalscorer for his club despite having a barren run in front of goal at the turn of the year. The Portuguese forward had a spell of 10 games where he scored just once for Manchester United.