Thursday 23 January 2014

Cristiano Ronaldo: “Ancelotti talks to me a lot and I’m thrilled to work with him”


“I’ve always considered myself a professional. I believe that I’ll be the best on the pitch if I work hard and have more ambition”, said the forward in an interview with France Football

Cristiano Ronaldo gave an interview to France Football magazine after being awarded the Ballon d’Or on 13 January at the awards ceremony in Zurich. The Portuguese striker is still ambitious and is excited to win more titles with Real Madrid this year: “The team has a lot of confidence in itself this year. On the pitch there aren’t many differences between last year’s team because Ancelotti has done a good job. He’s a good person, a great coach, he talks to me a lot and I’m thrilled to work with him. I feel really good with Real Madrid and, frankly, anything is possible this season”. 
After receiving the award that recognises the striker as the best player in 2013, Cristiano Ronaldo said: “I’m more relaxed, but that doesn’t mean that I’m going to stop working to improve. Every year is a different story; I’m not going to rest on my laurels. I always want to be the best, both with Real Madrid and Portugal”. Cristiano Ronaldo was handed the trophy by Pelé, which made receiving the award that much more significant. “It’s always special to receive such an important trophy and even more so from the hands of a leader in world football. It was a privilege; I admire Pelé”.The Real Madrid player wanted to highlight the importance of teamwork and all of his teammates: “I want to win every day, but that’s not always possible. That’s why my teammates are important, because without them I wouldn’t have been able to be at the level of recent years”.

Real Madrid’s number seven described the moment that he received the award. “It was very emotional, especially when my happy son came to hug me. That unleashed all of my feelings and I started to cry. And when I saw my family’s tears I started crying even harder. They were honest, real tears. Frankly, I wasn’t expecting it and I was really happy at that moment. It must have been a big surprise for people who don’t know me to see me cry like that, because I always look serious on the pitch. Those that share my life with me know that I’m a natural and spontaneous person”.Cristiano Ronaldo also spoke about how it felt to hear his name announced as the winner:“When you don’t know if you’re going to win you feel moments of tension, and all that huge weight is taken off of you when you hear your name called. It’s like something that leaves your body”.

Some of the coaches that Cristiano Ronaldo has worked with, like Alex Ferguson and Carlo Ancelotti, have defined the player as a hard worker. “I believe that I’ll be the best on the pitch if I work hard and have more ambition. Throughout my career I’ve always considered myself a professional. I’ve learned a lot from other players like Raúl, Michel Salgado, Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs, Figo, Rui Costa…” When asked about the competition with players like Messi in La Liga, Cristiano Ronaldo replied: “Of course, competition helps you to improve. But not just with Messi, with other top players whom I’ve played with in the Premier League and other competitions, like Luis Suárez, Iniesta, Neymar, Bale, Diego Costa and Falcao. If the level of the game rises, so does mine”.

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