Ronaldo: "I didn't want to leave Real Madrid"
Brazilian striker Ronaldo spoke to Fox Sports about his struggles with Fabio Capello at the Bernabéu, and revealed his choice for the 2017 Ballon D'orReal Madrid-Sevilla live: LaLiga
Ronaldo has revealed that when he left Real Madrid during the 2006/07 La Liga season, he did so against his will. In an interview with Fox Sports, the Brazilian poacher spoke of his time at Madrid, of the injuries he suffered, and of this year’s Balon D’or.
Ronaldo didn't want to leave Real Madrid
The striker arrived at the Bernabéu from Inter Milan in the summer of 2002. His exit from the club, four-and-a-half years and 83 goals later, was against his will.
“I didn’t want to leave. I started to have a lot of problems with Capello. If I was 100 grams overweight, he would take me out of the team. I am tolerant, I want to understand other points of view. But with him, I just couldn’t.
“I understand his position as the manager, but sometimes in football, 100 or 200 grams don’t make the difference. It’s about what you actually do, and he didn’t see what I actually did, what I could contribute, as the be all and end all.”
Ronaldo also discussed the injuries he suffered while at Madrid.
“It’s inevitable that you feel scared when you don’t have control of a situation. I was scared every time I went down, particularly after my first injury, for which there was no precedent in football.”
'Ballon D'or? I would choose Cristiano'
The Brazilian gave his thoughts on who should win the 2017 Ballon D’or, and opted for his Portuguese namesake.
“This year, I would choose Cristiano Ronaldo as the winner of the Ballon D’or. For the last two years, he has been decisive. He was key in so many matches in the Champions League, he’s in the final…”
Yet he was unwilling to be pulled in to the perpetual ‘Messi vs Ronaldo’ debate.
“Both of them are fantastic. I love Messi with the ball at his feet, he scores goals and does all the rest too. But Cristiano’s numbers can’t be ignored. It’s a cruel comparison. Both of them deserve respect.”
Brazil 2002 team was the best
Ronaldo won the World Cup with Brazil in 2002, scoring both goals in a final victory over Germany.
He believes that “the best team I played in was the Brazilian one in 2002, we felt that we could always score. It was a team without any vanity, or individuals. The collective was important.”
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