"I just felt like we were witnessing something" - Peter Crouch details experience of playing against Cristiano Ronaldo
Former Liverpool and England striker Peter Crouch has talked about his experience of playing against Cristiano Ronaldo in a recent interview. The Portuguese legend began his career at Sporting CP before moving to Manchester United aged 18.
Crouch enjoyed a successful career in English football, playing for the likes of Liverpool, Stoke City, Portsmouth, and Tottenham Hotspur. The former England international scored 106 goals in 468 Premier League appearances over his career.
Peter Crouch has transitioned into punditry after his playing career, and was a guest on SPORTbible's My Fives on YouTube. He spoke about players he played against, singling out Ronaldo for praise. He said:
"I played against him quite a few times, In the World Cup obviously, where Rooney got sent off, with Man United, Real Madrid and not a lot of people would have known, I played against him in the under-18s. He was playing for Portugal U-18s and I was on the bench for England. I obviously didn't know who these players were, but we had Ronaldo on one wing and Quaresma on the other, it was unbelievable."
"I remember Quaresma passing it over to Ronaldo and he was controlling it on his back and then getting at the defender. I just felt like we were witnessing something. But then what Ronaldo went on to achieve, he just became ruthless and ended up becoming this ruthless goalscorer."
Cristiano Ronaldo starred for Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus in his career, and is now on the books of Al-Nassr. The forward is, without doubt, one of the greatest footballers of all-time, having won the Ballon d'Or five times.
Ronaldo has scored 905 career goals and is the only player to have scored more than 900 professional goals in football history.
Poland star hails Cristiano Ronaldo as one of best ever
Poland captain Robert Lewandowski has praised his Portuguese counterpart Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of their meeting in the UEFA Nations League. The Barcelona man spoke about the upcoming match, which will take place on October 12. He said about the Al-Nassr forward (via Daily Post Nigeria):
“When I prepare for a match like against Portugal, I only think about the strength of the team as a whole, not just one player. I fully understand what Cristiano Ronaldo has achieved throughout his career, and how he has impacted the history of football with his achievements and numbers."
"This will certainly remain engraved in history. Regardless of age, his numbers keep going up and not the other way around. Of course, he is an exception and there are very few exceptions like him."
Cristiano Ronaldo scored in each of his country's first two games of the UEFA Nations League in September, both on Portuguese soil. The Selecao will travel to Poland to face Lewandowski and his teammates on October 12 before facing Scotland three days later.