“Every night, we went to the fast food restaurant to get the burgers that no one wanted anymore and were no longer for sale,” Paim said about his time as Ronaldo’s teammate, in the Sun newspaper on March 18. ten. “Sporting knew about it, but allowed us to go out. The management back then was not the same as today”.

Paim also talked about his trip to Brazil with Ronaldo. He said that ever since he was a young player, Ronaldo has practiced hard, dedicated and always wanted to become the best player. “He’s always like that, always angry every time he loses,” Paim added. “That effort brought him to his current position”.

Ronaldo apprenticed at Sporting Lisbon from 1997 to 2002. After that, he played one season for the B team and the first team. From 2003 to 2009, Ronaldo played for Man Utd , scored 118 goals, won three Premier Leagues and one Champions League. Ronaldo’s career continued to rise when he moved to Real Madrid. During nine years playing in Spain, CR7 won four Champions Leagues, two La Ligas, and set a record of 450 goals for Real.

Ronaldo also succeeded when playing for Portugal . In 2016, CR7 contributed to bringing Portugal to its first Euro championship. Ronaldo’s 127 goals for Portugal are currently a record in the international arena. Ronaldo also won five Golden Balls in 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017.

When they practiced together, Paim played even better than Ronaldo. However, after a failed trial at Chelsea in 2008, the 35-year-old former striker accepted to play for lesser-known clubs. In 2018, Paim retired from second division team Leixoes. “I regret some of the decisions I made, but I understand I cannot reach Cristiano’s level. But it is true that at that time, I played better than him. He should give it to I’m one of his Golden Balls,” Paim joked.

After leaving Real in 2018, Ronaldo played three seasons for Juventus, then returned to Man Utd. However, the comeback was not as successful as expected. After empty-handed in the 2021-2022 season, Ronaldo repeatedly violated the discipline of Man Utd and new coach Erik Ten Hag. In November 2022, in an interview with MC Piers Morgan, he publicly criticized the club and coach. Not long after, Man Utd accepted to liquidate the contract and from January 2023, Ronaldo joined Al Nassr. He currently receives the highest income among players, up to 200 million USD per year at the Saudi Arabian Club.