DAMNING THE BALLYHOO ON...CRISTIANO RONALDO

Football has become a very profitable business, and that is the way the game has gone since the turn of the Millennium. What I am confused about, is the record breaking transfer fee for a player who according to many is not even the best player on the planet. A year ago, you could have said Rocket Ronnie was worth that figure, and you would have said it because you knew no one could afford him, however, after a season where he has come nowhere near hitting the heights of the previous year, you would have thought the price tag would have gone down. Not so.

Cristiano Ronaldo should at some point in the next week or so become the most expensive footballer in the history of the sport. The fee involved, is not even rumoured to be, but confirmed as £80million. Lets write that out fully, £80,000,000,000. That’s a lot of zero’s. That’s £20million short of buying Newcastle United. That’s the GDP of some small countries. Ever see those provide water for a village adverts if you pay £5 a month? That figure could provide water for a couple of nations. His battle with ‘Wham’ over who can get the best tan and wear the shortest shorts at Club Tropicana is also laughable.

I’m not here to argue about the morals of spending that sort of money on a footballer, but whether or not he is indeed worth that amount of money in footballing terms. He is undoubtedly a player with immense skill, natural talent, excellence in both feet, strong in the air, faster then a car (!) as well. He played a huge part in Manchester United and their success over the last 3 seasons. However last season the signs of petulance towards the club (not towards other teams/refs/fans) and self indulgent attitude, were there for all to see. In the first 10 minutes of the European Cup final against Barcelona, Cristiano Ronaldo was trying to win the game on his own. He had more shots in the first 10 mins then the rest of the team did put together, it was almost as if he started believing his own hype, and was thinking about the next headline he was going to dominate. It didn’t happen. The headlines after the game were once again regarding his flirtations with Real Madrid. He believed his own hype.

The Portugese winker has his head so far up his own arse at times you have to wonder if in his spare time he is a contortionist. Contrast this with players such as Messi and Kaka, who although arguably more talented keep themselves out the limelight and will always make sure that it is the team who come first. In the Chelsea vs Barca Semi Final, Messi was at the end of GBH from pretty much the whole defence but not once did he moan, he simply got on with his job and played his football. Would the greasy one act in such a professional manner? I doubt it.

Ronaldo's diving antics sure won't be missed when he hits La Liga and over the last couple of seasons I am sure I am not the only person who has been sick of the sight of him rolling around on the floor at the mere hint of an oppostion player breathing on him, let alone tackling him.

Now before Real again spent £56million on Kaka, Zinedine Zidane was the most expensive footballer of all time, and not one person could deny that this man was worth the £40 odd million that was spent on him. Many people say he is just behind Pele and Maradona as the greatest footballer ever to grace the game. The touch was exquisitie, the vision was telescopic, his awareness would put Peter Parker’s Spider Senses to shame, his footballing brain was so quick he knew which pass he would play days before he played them. He was also arrogant, but in a good way, the silent assassin type of arrogance, where you knew if you crossed him, he would make you pay for it, either by scoring or creating a goal, or as Matteratzi found out, giving you a whack. He knew he was good, and he made others around him also look good. Ronaldo didn’t do this. He couldn’t use all his attributes to make other players look good, and that is what I and many others think makes the best of the best the best, and that is why Zinedine Zidane makes a mockery of Ronaldos £80 million pound price tag. Ask yourself this one simple question, is Ronaldo really worth two Zidanes?

VK