Cristiano Ronaldo has already
achieved many things in his short career. With Manchester United
he's won two league championships, the FA Cup, the League Cup, the
Community Shield and the UEFA Champions League. He was a runner-up
with Portugal at UEFA EURO 2004, featured prominently at the 2006
FIFA World Cup Germany™ as well as this year's European
Championships.
Individually, his list of awards seems to
be increasing by the month. Last Monday, he was named as the FIFPro
Player of the Year, on Wednesday he was listed among the 23
nominees in the running to be crowned the FIFA World Player of the
Year and was also presented with the European Golden Boot, while he
has already been presented with the UEFA Club Footballer of the
Year and Premier League Player of the Year awards.
Yet despite the legion of achievements and
accolades, the 23-year-old is hungry for more, starting with the
FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2008, as FIFA.com found out at Manchester
United's Trafford Training Centre recently. The questions posed
exclusively to the talented winger came directly from you, the
FIFA.com users. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was by
far our most popular ‘Ask' interview yet, with thousands of
questions being sent from all over the globe.
Red4eva: You achieved so much last
season. How can you top that this time around?
Cristiano Ronaldo: Last season I had the opportunity to
win many things, not just with the team but also as an individual.
For me, last season enabled me to achieve great things on many,
many levels and obviously I'm really happy. This season I'm just
trying to do the same. I know it will be difficult, but I'm
ambitious, I'm playing alongside great players and so I'm confident
that the same opportunities will come again and that's a fantastic
feeling. I want to win more things.
NewtonHeath: You've got the
opportunity to be part of the club champions of the world at the
FIFA Club World Cup in Japan. How are you feeling about
that?
It's fantastic and I'm very excited. It's the
first time that I've had the opportunity to win this trophy in my
career and I'm hoping to do that in December. Me and my colleagues
are looking forward to being there and playing the best football we
can for the fans. It's a good tournament. We have a lot of
supporters in Japan and it's going to be a pleasure to play there.
We want to play well for the people and come home with the trophy.
I want to win it 100 per cent.
Trafford_Oldie: Who are your
friends in the Manchester United team? Does the team go out much
together?
I'm lucky because I have a great
relationship with everyone, not just two or three, but I'd say that
my closest friends are Nani, Anderson and the Brazilian boys
[Rafael and Fabio] because they speak my language, but also Edwin
[van der Sar], Rio [Ferdinand], Pat [Evra], Carlos [Tevez]. It's a
good group, a funny group and it's a pleasure to be here with
them.
diegogol: Why did you choose the
No7 shirt?
I didn't choose. It was given to me. When
I was signing for Manchester United, I asked for the No28, because
that was my squad number when I was at Sporting. But the boss [Sir
Alex Ferguson] said "No, no. I'm giving you the No7." It was a
great challenge for me, because the club have had some great
players such as George Best and David Beckham who have worn this
number. It's an honour and a pleasure, it's a special number and I
love wearing it, but my responsibility is still the same, I have to
play well for the team, no matter what number I'm wearing.
moradojcc91: What is the most
important or special goal you have scored so far in your
career?
To be honest, I have scored a few great
goals and to choose one is difficult. Last season, I won the award
for the goal of the season against Portsmouth which I scored direct
from a free-kick. It was a good goal, a fantastic goal, but I
couldn't really pick that one out as my personal favourite.
flora18: What is your favourite
footballing memory?
Again, there are a few. The
first time I started to play football in a team -my move to
Sporting was obviously very special, as was my move to Manchester
United. Thinking about the times when there have been big, exciting
changes in my life brings back so many great memories for me.
youssef: What was the most
difficult moment in your career?
Again, just as
there have been good moments and good goals, there have also been a
number of difficult times and it's hard to select one of them. The
first one that comes to my mind is the defeat in the final of EURO
2004, then the FA Cup final defeats to Arsenal and Chelsea. When
you lose, you always have a bad feeling, but in big games like
that, when you have the chance of winning a medal, it can be a
little bit harder.
titecindy31: How did it feel to
become Portugal captain for the first time?
It's
fantastic. It was a wonderful feeling to put the armband on for the
first time - and it still is a great feeling whenever I am given
the chance to be captain of Portugal. It makes me proud. Obviously,
I'm still very young, so for me to be to be made captain is
amazing, but it doesn't alter the way I play. I want to play well
all the time and I want to win all the time.
asmir90: Do you have any tips on
becoming a better dribbler of the ball?
Practice!
Always try to do new things and work at them every day. That's all
I do. Sometimes doing new things on the pitch isn't possible, but
even now, I'm hoping to show the fans some different tricks in the
future!
whatyadoin: What goals do you have
left as a player?
I always want to improve. Last season was the best moment of my
short career so far, but I know I can get even better. I want to
score more goals, score great goals and win more trophies. I'm at
the right club for that.
mmhughes: What is the best stadium
you have played at, in terms of atmosphere?
Apart from Old Trafford, I have to say that the atmosphere at
Anfield whenever we play there is wonderful. I love to play in Rome
and Barcelona and I think Arsenal has a nice stadium too. Oh, I
forgot Celtic! The fans are incredible. It's always great when we
go and play there.
iNDIRA'89: If you couldn't have
been a professional footballer, what would you have
done?
I don't know. To be honest, I haven't a clue. I've been asked this
question a few times, but I don't know. Obviously, I would have
done something in my life, but I don't know what.
cristianofan: Could you define
yourself in one word?
In one word?! (Laughing) Brilliant!
FIFA.com: Cristiano, what was your
favourite question from our users?
I particularly liked the question about the No7 shirt, because it
brought back happy memories of signing for Manchester United, but
my favourite was the last one. I've never been asked that before -
and it made me laugh!