Ballon D’Or Winner Cristiano Ronaldo Explains How Manchester United Helped Him
REUTERS/Juan Medina
Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo won the fifth Ballon d’Or of his career to go level with arch-rival Lionel Messi. The Portuguese played a pivotal role in Los Blancos’ success last season, wherein they won both domestic and European silverware.
The decorated forward’s well deserved accolade completed a decade-old rivalry between him and Messi, with both having won the award five times apiece.
It was reported by Mirror that the 32-year-old winger, after his grand triumph, singled out his former club, Manchester United, and “pinpointed the experience of mixing with the likes of Ryan Giggs and Roy Keane as the moment his belief skyrocketed”.
Ronaldo was quoted as saying: “Since I was 14, 15 or 16 years old, I knew that I was different from other kids. I did different things. I realized that I was good at Manchester United, when I played with players like Giggs, Keane or Ferdinand. I had talent.
“The English mentality is different, and those people helped me a lot to be what I am now. I have to thank my colleagues in Manchester. ”
The Portuguese sensation also talked about Lionel Messi, and expressed his hope that their battle continues for a few more years.
“I hope to play at this level for a few more years, I hope the battle with Messi continues, things happen for a reason,” he added. “I feel good this season and we’ll see what we win at the end of the year. I’m happy at Madrid, I want to stay there, I would like to finish my career at Madrid if possible.”
Written by Sidharth Jindal 
Sports fanatic with a passion for writing (predominantly football) and “Wants to live life to its fullest.” Writes about the Premier League on his personal blog.