Am I speaking to the real Ronaldo?

[Laughter] That’s Mourinho’s stuff... I don’t like controversy.

Does it bother you that he used you to get at Cristiano?

Everyone’s opinion should be respected. Every footballer writes his own history and what one does doesn’t erase anyone else’s achievements. I’m happy that I finished as I did.

Tell me then... which Ronaldo was better?

Our styles of play are nothing like each other. I was much more of a centre forward than he is. He’s a second line striker. What I would say is that in his time at Madrid he’s learned to score goals. Some of the finest goals in the world and if you score a lot of goals it’s because you’re good. Nobody scores goals by chance.

In your time there wasn’t the fierce competition there is now between Cristiano and Messi...

Quite the reverse. In my opinion there’s less competition now. I don’t want to fall into the trap of presuming that in my era the football was better, but I look at it now and there’s only those two. Maybe Neymar is getting up there, though he’s still got a long way to go... But back in my day there were so many good players. I was competing with Zidane, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Owen, Figo, Batistuta... There were so many players who made their teams awesome. Now it’s just Messi and Cristiano, though the truth is they are both very, very good.

Come on, show your cards, which one of the two would you choose if you had to.

I’d take Messi. It’s a tough call, like when you want to buy a house and they offer you two amazing ones... you have to choose one...

You like Messi more?

I think he’s the more complete player, or at least more decisive. He appears when he’s needed to score.

Is it because Cristiano needs more space?

Messi invents goals all by himself. But Cristiano also scores loads of goals without any space and doing it all himself. They are both out of this world.

Going back to Mourinho, what was he like when you met him at Barça?

He was Robson’s assistant. He was laid back and a good laugh. He’d go out to eat and have dinner with the players who spoke Portuguese, like me. I was young back then, just 19.

Did he help you?

Yes, a lot. Now I see him and I think “I would have liked to have him as a coach”.

I reckon you might have tired of him quite quickly.

I never had problems with a coach, except for with Cuper, who I had real problems with... and with Capello I guess.

Any more names...?

No! That’s it.

Isn’t Mourinho a little general?

I know how football works and there’s two different things: how you are as a person and how you want people to see you. I’ve talked to lots of players who’ve had him as a coach and they say great things about him. Almost nobody has a bad word for him, even those he left on the bench.

Was his Madrid a letdown?

I think he did well. To win a Liga and a Copa with that Barcelona team around is pretty good. Barcelona have had, for five or six years now, an historic team. In a hundred years we’ll still talk about this Barça side.

Which coach understood you best?

Vicente del Bosque.

Why?

Because he was really straightforward. All the players loved him because he did exactly what needed to be done, without causing any fuss. Training, team talks... He didn’t make you stay in a hotel before a home game, which I thought was a good thing, because that just kills the players. It got me down and Vicente understood that. His team talks were three or four minutes. I bet the Spanish side are very happy with him.

You didn’t like the whip...

The age of dictators passed a long time ago. The coach has to gain the trust of the players to be a leader. He needs to get inside the heads of the players and make them understand what he wants. He needs to make the team want to fight for him.

Did Florentino make a mistake getting rid of Del Bosque?

Yes, it was clearly a mistake. And nearly everybody knows it. I still don’t understand now what happened back then; we were celebrating (la Liga 2003) and he kicked him out.

And Hierro...

It all happened at the same time.

When was the last time you spoke to Florentino?

I was in Madrid a couple of months ago and we talked.

About the past?

About the present.

About Neymar, because of your image rights company ‘9Ine’?

No, it wasn’t about my company... I was speaking to him without looking for anything.

Would you like to come back to Madrid as Zidane has done?

No, I don’t want to coach or any of that. I’ve got lots of work with my sponsors and with the World Cup in Brazil. But I’d like to be involved in something bigger, something social, to make football more important in society – from a political point of view, so football can have a good influence in society.

Why didn’t Neymar come to Madrid?

Because he chose Barcelona.

Madrid had him signed up?

I don’t know the details, but I know Madrid made a good offer. It’s like I said before, he had two great options and had to choose one.

Was 100 million a lot for Bale?

I don’t know the answer to that one. Every year we get taken aback by the amounts paid in football, but hopefully he can play well and how much he cost will be forgotten. I hope the fans enjoy watching him.

If Bale cost 100 million, how much would you be worth now?

I don’t know [laughs]. But players shouldn’t even think about it, that way madness lies. I struggled with it, but I managed to forget about it, on the pitch at least.

You weren’t cheap...

39 million euros.

Tell the truth, is there jealousy between the players for how much they each earn?

I think there is, but I never had that. Each one gets what they deserve. But everybody’s free to think what they want. I never worried about it.

Could Bale destabilise the squad?

The most important thing is that in group everybody is aware that the team is the most important thing, no matter what anyone earns.

What do you think when you see Casillas on the bench?

Well, from outside it all seems very bizarre, and for me it would be strange if I didn’t know Diego López, but I know him and he’s definitely good enough to play. The truth is it’s good to have two great keepers to choose from.

But Casillas is Casillas...

He’s a symbol for Madrid and for Spain. He’s won everything and in football nobody gives you anything for free. If you don’t play, off you go to the bench.

You also worked with Ancelotti, how is he?

He’s like Del Bosque. He’s relaxed, straightforward; he likes to keep it simple. I’ve talked to him a lot and he’s really keen to win everything with Madrid. He wants to write his name in Madrid’s history books.

Finally, you look very happy playing poker, what do you like about the game?

I’ve played for a long time now. I like being at the table with my mates and it’s a real rush when you get some good cards... and you’re thinking “just don’t let anyone notice!”

http://as.com/diarioas/2013/09/20/english/1379688798_906292.html
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Great interview, awesome person

Good interview, I was impressed by how smart his answers were.

The GOAT has spoken

very nice answers....