Manchester United legend Cristiano Ronaldo has been backed as the greatest of all time, by none other than Steven Gerrard.
It is a year since Cristiano Ronaldo torched his second spell at Manchester United with an explosive interview which led to his departure from the club.
After a frustrating World Cup tournament which saw his rival Lionel Messi win the tournament with Argentina, and Ronaldo once again fail to score a knockout goal, he ended up making a surprise club move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr.
Ronaldo has since been joined in the country by stars including Neymar, Karim Benzema, and even counts Alex Telles as one of his teammates once again after he was sold by Manchester United in the summer too.
Cristiano Ronaldo praised
Cristiano Ronaldo is still scoring at a prolific rate, as you might expect in Saudi Arabia, but he is doing it at international level too, where he continues to extend his record as the all-time international leading goalscorer.
The plaudits for his career are wide-ranging, and now former Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard has even been converted.
Gerrard was quoted by the Liverpool Echo in a new interview, talking about how Ronaldo ended up playing a key part in his appointment as Al-Ettifaq manager.
He referred to Ronaldo with an acronym for ‘Greatest Of All Time’, showing his respect for the Manchester United hero.
Gerrard said: “The arrival of ‘The GOAT’ as we call him, Cristiano (Ronaldo), him arriving in January obviously (was) a huge signing,” he said. “He still had a lot of football to offer.
“So, from afar, for six months, I was looking in at Cristiano Ronaldo’s results, at the league, watching some games and watching some highlights. I think from that moment, the league around the world had become a very popular talking point for everyone. After Cristiano’s arrival, even more big-name signings, talents and skill sets were joining the league.
“At the time it coincided with me being out of the game and looking for my next opportunity, so I was fascinated from afar looking in, and when my agent brought a couple of opportunities in the Gulf area at the time, I was fascinated to explore them.”
Gerrard has changed his mind
Steven Gerrard has evidently been swayed by Cristiano Ronaldo, referring to the Manchester United star as the greatest. Perhaps he will change his mind again when he leaves Saudi Arabia.
Asked by Gary Neville on his Overlap YouTube channel a year ago, he picked Lionel Messi as the greatest of the two.
His opinion has changed a lot since his famous 2010 interview when he declared Joe Cole as better than Messi.
He told The Guardian: “Messi can do some amazing things, but anything he can do Joe can do as well, if not better.”
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