Cristiano Ronaldo spoke to BT Sport ahead of his upcoming film titled ‘Ronaldo’, and gave his opinion on the best manager he’s worked with, as well as revealing the talented young players he thinks are destined for big success
The Real Madrid forward surprisingly put Jos Mourinho at the top of the list of managers he’s worked with, when asked about his opinion on the Chelsea FC coach. Ronaldo was speaking to BT Sport in an exclusive interview ahead of the launch of his film titled ‘Ronaldo’, scheduled to be released in cinemas in the UK on the 9th of November.
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The Portuguese superstar also gave his opinion on the talented young players in the world at the moment, and came up with a list of five names: Real Madrid team-mate Martin A?degaard, Chelsea FC star Eden Hazard, Manchester United youngster Memphis Depay, Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba and FC Barcelona star Neymar — the latter added almost as a reluctant afterthought.
Ronaldo rates Mourinho as his top manager
Cristiano Ronaldo’s relationship with former manager Jos Mourinho gradually deteriorated over time at Real Madrid, and by all accounts, the Chelsea FC manager did not depart the La Liga giants amicably. Nonetheless, the former Manchester United star rated Mourinho as one of his top managers when asked about the Blues’ boss by BT Sport.
“I would put him at the top, I always say that,” Ronaldo told BT Sport (via Mirror UK). “Hea s a good coach, he did many good things and won many trophies for other clubs. My coach is now [Rafa] Benitez and Ia m comfortable we are going to win many things together.a
Ronaldo also revealed the names of young players he thinks are destined for big success in the future: “You see many players with potential, I will mention [Martin] A?degaard of Madrid for example, at 16 hea s still young but you can see hea s a very good player.
“[Eden] Hazard for example, the No.7 of Manchester [Memphis] Depay is a good player too, [Paul] Pogba and maybe Neymar.a
Political nature of some of the answers intriguing
Although Ronaldo and Mourinho may not see eye-to-eye on many things, they do have a common confidant — super-agent Jorge Mendes. The Portuguese football agent is known to be close to both men, and was himself recently heard showing his support for Mourinho. The Real Madrid star may well have spoken from the heart about Mourinho, but it wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to suggest he could have had a little word in his ear from Mendes.
The answers to the question about the young players with potential, however, is blatantly political. Neymar is arguably the best by a distance at the moment, but the powers that be at Real Madrid would not have taken kindly to their star player gushing about a player from their bitter rivals. Meanwhile, the inclusion of A?degaard in that list is somewhat dubious too, given the 16-year-old has yet to establish himself in the first-team, and indeed, does not appear close to being able to do so.
Perhaps the interview should just be taken at face value, but the seemingly political nature of some of the answers is very much in keeping with the way Real Madrid like their employees to operate.