'One of the best in the world'

Monday, 5 February 2007
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It will be interesting to see the reception Cristiano Ronaldo receives when he runs out at the Arsenal Stadium on Tuesday evening. As a Manchester United FC player he would never expect the warmest of welcomes in north London; in the maroon of Portugal it could be decidedly frosty.

World Cup scapegoat
Not that anything is likely to knock the winger - who celebrates his 22nd birthday today - off his stride. The English fans on hand to watch Portugal's friendly international with Brazil might cast their minds back to his run-in with Wayne Rooney in the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals, but Ronaldo has long since silenced those wanting to make him a scapegoat for England's failure in Germany.

'Enormous talent'
In fact according to his national-team coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, the pressure heaped on Ronaldo following the events of last summer may have spurred him on to new heights. "Anyone who knows him knows he is able to deal with the pressure and sometimes that pressure motivates him even more," Scolari told uefa.com. "What he has been doing is simply the consequence of his enormous talent and commitment to the game in his training sessions. He has a unique skill and creativity but he also knows that talent on its own is not enough so he works and works a lot."

Hard work
That hard work has paid off for United. His fine form was underlined yesterday with a goal, his 15th in the Premiership this season, in the 4-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur FC. The victory maintained Sir Alex Ferguson's side's six-point advantage at the top of the Premiership table and left them on course for their first title since 2003. Ronaldo has also been on target for Portugal, with three goals in four qualifiers as they vie for a place at UEFA EURO 2008™. His influence on the side has grown since Luís Figo and Pauleta retired from international football, and his international coach is convinced he is still improving.

Future captain
"He's one of the best players in the world and still has room to progress," Scolari said. "If he keeps raising the quality of his game as he's been consistently doing, he can go to the very top. Of course a football career depends on a lot of factors but I anticipate the best for him. I've said it before, and I'll repeat this. If Cristiano keeps this attitude and leadership on and off the field he could be a future captain of the national team."

Familiar faces
Scolari will need Ronaldo to reproduce the form he has been showing for United if Portugal are to reach UEFA EURO 2008™. Scolari's side, finalists on home soil in 2004, have started slowly in Group A and the Brazilian coach will have qualifiers on his mind when he leads Portugal out against his old team in a friendly on Tuesday. Not that he will allow the opportunity to catch up with some familiar faces to pass him by.

'Very special'
"I have to admit facing my country of birth is always very special, especially after having coached them to the World Cup success in 2002, so I'm really looking forward to this match. Nevertheless the main objective is to prepare for the very important EURO 2008™ qualifying games we have ahead of us. Belgium and Serbia are very difficult opponents and we want to use this match as a preparation for those March fixtures."

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