‘I watched Sir Alex Ferguson make Cristiano Ronaldo cry – it was brutal’
'Who do you think you are?'
Rio Ferdinand has recalled the moment he watched former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson make Cristiano Ronaldo cry in the dressing room.
Ferguson sanctioned United’s move for Ronaldo back in 2003 and the Portugal forward went on to spend six successful seasons at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo scored over 100 goals during his first spell at the club and helped Fergie’s side win three three Premier League titles, three domestic cups and the Champions League.
After leaving to join Real Madrid in 2009, Ronaldo established himself as not only one of the best players in the world but the best of all time, lifting four more Champions League trophies and five Ballon d’Or awards.
Ronaldo scored a quite staggering 450 goals in 438 appearances for Madrid, surpassing 50 goals for the season six times in nine years.
The all-time great, now 39, has often spoken about the influence Ferguson had on his career, with the pair sharing a special bond following their time together.
But Ferguson was not against sharing some home truths to Ronaldo and made him cry in the dressing room after a Champions League game in 2005.
According to another Old Trafford legend, ex-England defender Ferdinand, Fergie was unhappy with Ronaldo’s performance against Benfica as United were knocked out of the Champions League.
In the BBC Sport documentary ‘Sir Alex’, Ferdinand said: ‘We’d been in Portugal and Cristiano hadn’t played well. He was young and tried too hard.
‘I remember we played Benfica, and the manager ripped into Cristiano. He went, “Who d’you think you are? You’re coming in here trying to prove to everybody who you think you are, you think you’re a superstar.”
‘And I remember Cristiano in tears in the changing room. And I was like, “This manager doesn’t care, man. He doesn’t care who you are.”
‘But then look at the player he became, Cristiano needed moments like that.
‘The manager could’ve been soft and nice with him but he had to be hard to get him to where he got to, and that was the best player in the world.’
The outburst did not do lasting damage to Ronaldo’s affection for Ferguson which was fully cemented prior to his father’s passing in 2005.
‘It’s hard to mention just one [moment],’ Ronaldo told United’s official website when asked about his relationship with the legendary manager.
‘There were so many beautiful moments that we had together. Not just winning things. But in my heart I keep the most difficult things.
‘Probably he doesn’t remember, but I will say it because it’s a beautiful story. One day, my father was in hospital, and I was so emotional, very low. And I spoke with him and he said: “Cristiano, go there for two or three days”.
‘We had difficult games [coming up] and I was a key player in that moment.
‘He said: “It will be tough because we have difficult games, but I understand your situation and I’ll leave you [out] and you can go and see your father.”
‘For me, these are the most important things – apart from winning Champions Leagues, to win the Premier League, to win cups and stuff.
‘So I have to appreciate him, because what he said to me, he always did. I have to appreciate that.’
Ronaldo returned to Manchester United 12 years after leaving in 2021, scoring 27 goals in 54 appearances during his second spell at the Theatre of Dreams.
‘As everybody knows, since I signed for Manchester [United] at 18, Sir Alex Ferguson was the key,’ he told MUTV after returning to Old Trafford.
‘I remember when we played against Manchester when I was at Sporting Lisbon. For me, Sir Alex Ferguson is like a father in football for me.
‘He helped me a lot, he taught me many things, and in my opinion of course he had a big role because the relationship that we had, we keep in touch all the time, and he’s an unbelievable person.
‘I really like him a lot and he was the main key for me to be in the position that I am, that I signed for Manchester United.’
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