Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has revealed that he was left jaw-dropped by what Cristiano Ronaldo ensures he has available to him at his house in his strive for greatness.
Ronaldo signed from Juventus this summer on a two year deal, with an option for a one-year extension.
The Portugal captain initially joined the Red Devils in 2003 from Sporting in a £12.2m transfer.
Under the leadership of Sir Alex Ferguson the forward became one the greatest players in the game, winning the Premier League three time, the Champions League once, as well as the FA Cup once.
Ronaldo then joined Real Madrid for £80million, where he became one of the greatest of all time.
(Image: AFP)
Former teammate Ferdinand has spoken about how the five-time Ballon d’Or winner has always been determined to be the best, going as far as having different members of staff available to him at his home.
Speaking to Anthony Joshua on William Hill’s YouTube channel, Ferdinand said: “People never talk about Cristiano’s bravery.
“He was brave to take risks, he came over to another country. He was brave to remain the person that he was and didn’t change really. He became obsessed with the sport that he chose and then drilled down into details which was building a team around himself.
Will Manchester United win the Premier League with Cristiano Ronaldo? Let us know in the comments section…
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
“I went round his house one time and I walked in and he had about six/seven people sitting in his front room. I said to him, ‘Cris, who are all these people, man?’
“He was like, ‘That’s my personal masseur, my nutritionist, my doctor, my physio, my chef.’
“He had all these people and back then no one was doing that. He was a visionary in that sense.”
Since returning to the Premier League, Ronaldo has scored three goals in two appearances and is already proving that even at 36, he is still more than capable of dominating the most competitive league in the world.
(Image: REUTERS)
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Ferdinand continued: “He’s just looking for every little detail that’s going to enable him to improve. He will send me a photo and he is doing deep water recovery in the ocean. He drove for two hours to get there from Turin when he was playing with Juventus.
“Other people are at home or out at dinner. He’s just looking for that extra edge.”
Ronaldo has 678 goals and 900 career appearances. It is clear that he will be remembered as one of our greatest players. And if he can bring silverware to Old Trafford in the coming seasons, we can argue that he’s the best player we have ever seen.